Kiyone Muyo!
by Thrythlind
Summary: Kiyone has long been cursed with a great deal of luck, good and bad, though the bad is most obvious. The appearance of an old problem of Ryoko's signals a turn in good luck for the detective.
1. No Need for Mysteries

No Need for Mysteries

Deep space, just beyond the edge of the Jurai frontier, far from Galaxy Police jurisdiction:

"Have you discovered where she was?" the speaker was tall and shadowed beneath a heavy cloak. He was floating cross-legged and looking over the shoulder of a short reptilian humanoid that was busily working three separate holographic keyboards.

"The data indicates Earth," the reptilian answered.

"I do not need to know where she is," the man snapped angrily. "I need to know where she was two hundred years ago. When I know that then I can move on both."

"It is as I said, sir," the reptilian was annoyed now. "It seems she was on Earth, at least she disappeared in that area for a brief period of time."

"And she is there now as well." You could almost feel the smile under the cowl. "Very good, you'll be rewarded as usual." The speaker vanished into thin air, and the reptilian breathed a sigh of relief.

Earth, Rikyu's House of Teriyaki

"Welcome to Rikyu's House of Teriyaki, would you prefer smoking or non-smoking?" The voice was highly cheerful, and the short speech was well rehearsed. No hint of the speaker's irritation at this particular job showed through.

"Non-smoking, please," the man answered.

"Oh," the woman interjected. "And could you make it a booth, please?"

"Why, yes," the teal-haired hostess answered. "That will be no problem. If you'll just follow me." A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead, over the red headband, as she noticed the blonde hostess behind her start towards the sound of opening doors.

"Welcome to Yaki's House of Terikyu," the teal-haired hostess tried not to wince as she seated her customers. "Do you want to smoke?"

"Your waiter will be with you shortly," the teal-haired hostess assured her customers before she turned to stomp on over to attempt yet again to teach her brain-dead partner. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw who the customers were.

"Well I'm hot enough as it is," a silver-haired woman responded smartly.

"Oh, Ryoko!" the blonde chirped happily. "What are you doing here? Oh and Sasami's with you!"

"Ryoko is helping me with the shopping," the little girl explained happily, the cat-rabbit thing on her head meowed in agreement. "Ryoko wanted to stop here to eat."

"You know it's a bad idea for us to socialize while we're working, guys," the teal-haired hostess noted.

"I swear we didn't know you and Mihoshi were here," Ryoko protested. "I was just hungry, that's all."

"Oh in that case, we'll seat you right now," Mihoshi, the blonde, declared sweetly. She grabbed a couple of menus from their case and started for the dining area. In the process she managed to trip over her stool, knock over the hostess stand and spill all the menus across the floor. They mixed with the toothpicks and candies from the hostess stand. "Oh, Kiiiiyoooneee!!" the blonde began balling pathetically.

"Mi-Ho-Shi!!!!" the teal-haired hostess clenched her fist and did her best to control the volume of her voice. Ryoko and Sasami both sweat-dropped as Kiyone turned to them and her sweet exterior returned. "Please seat yourself while I help Mihoshi clean up this mess."

"Okay," Sasami agreed reluctantly. "If you say so." Ryoko caught sight of the manager on his way and quickly agreed.

"Well let's go get our table Sasami," she insisted and herded the girl away from what was about to be an embarrassing situation.

"I don't see how you can mess up as a hostess," Kiyone lectured the sobbing Mihoshi who was gingerly picking up menus. "All you do is ask smoking or non-smoking and seat them. How hard can that be?"

"I'm sorry, Kiyone, I didn't mean it."

"Here let me help you with that," Kiyone looked up at the sound of the voice and saw a tall man with spiky red hair. He was smiling kindly as he bent over to help collect the spilt items.

"You two again!" the manager shouted. "You're more trouble than…"

"Don't worry, Hirata-San," the tall red haired man interrupted, smiling. Looking closely Kiyone saw that he had yellow eyes with vertical pupil slits. "I'm sure it was just an accident."

"R-r-r-ikyu-San!" the manager stammered. "Uh, but sir, it is always an accident with these two."

"I don't mean do to it," Mihoshi wailed. The patrons shrewdly worked to avoid looking towards the commotion. They finished collecting the spilt items and stood up. The red-haired man reached down to help Kiyone to her feet, and she noticed he was wearing a pair of black plastic bracers with silver lines running through it. The item was obviously designed to look like some sort of circuitry.

"Hey!" Sasami yelled from the back, Ryoko was nowhere to be seen. Kiyone assumed she had teleported somewhere. "Where are you going, we haven't even ordered yet!" She was soon rocketing past the scene of the most recent Mihoshi debacle, and out side into the street. Or at least she was rocketing as much as she could while carrying the shopping bags. Kiyone would have followed to make sure she was okay, but Sasami did have Ryo-Ohki with her, she should be fine.

"Exciting day today," Rikyu said with a smile. Kiyone narrowed her eyes, there was something decidedly odd about this. She had more than a few theories, but now was not the time to discuss them.

"What can we do for you sir," the manager asked, still stiff-backed in a stance of attention. He quickly gestured for Mihoshi and Kiyone to do the same, which they did, they needed the jobs after all.

"Oh nothing," he said cheerfully. The manner was as much put on as Kiyone's own welcome speech. "I just thought I might get something to eat after my trip."

"Yes, sir," he said, then he turned to the two women and barked an order. "You heard him!" He jabbed a finger at Mihoshi. "Get Rikyu-San the best seat right now! Makibi clean up this mess!!" Kiyone suspected that the manager gave her the more demeaning job because of Mihoshi's looks. It was almost as disturbing a trend as Mihoshi's constant bumbling.

"Yes, sir! Manager-San, sir," Mihoshi declared officially. "Will you follow me Rikyu-San?"

"I'd be delighted," the man bowed slightly, eliciting a cheerful bounce from Mihoshi who went off to go seat the apparent owner. Before they got far Rikyu turned to Kiyone. "Makibi-San, I like your earring." He winked knowingly before following the blonde.

"What could he mean by that?" Kiyone thought to herself. Then her eyes widened. "He couldn't know about Yagami, could he?"

Outside in the streets of Tokyo

"That was too close," Ryoko sighed leaning against the alley wall. Then she saw Ryo-Ohki and Sasami frowning at her. The little girl, with green hair many shades brighter than Kiyone's teal, set down the groceries and proceeded to try and catch her breath.

"What did you do that for Ryoko?" Sasami huffed.

"I'm sorry about Sasami," Ryoko for once sounded truly apologetic. Sasami was stunned. "I just wasn't hungry anymore."

"Well you could have said something," that tone Sasami reserved for lecturing the supposedly more mature members of her household. "Now you have me starving and it'll be a _long_ time before we get back home."

"I'm sorry kiddo, we'll stop at a McDonalds's and get some American food on the way in. I hear they have those little animal toys you like so much. How's that?"

"Kiddo?" Sasami thought to herself, then forgot it at the prospect of a new beanie baby to add to her growing collection. "Really? Oh that'll be great, thank you Ryoko!" Then Sasami hopped happily ahead of Ryoko who was closely following behind, humming quietly too herself.

A small house on the edge of Tokyo

It had been awhile since the Galaxy Police had been here, it was comforting that they had finally re-assigned the section to someone. Even if they seemed to be somewhat less than competent. Or at least that one blonde was at any rate. The other woman was certainly observant, she had been looking at him strange the entire time. At first he had passed that off as being a side effect of his eyes, they were odd for this planet. When he recognized what the earring was, however, it took on a little bit more meaning.

"I'll have to tell Hirata to give them a little leeway on the hours," he noted to himself. He hadn't been off planet for a long time, since his craft had broken down, and didn't plan to be off for a long time yet. Still it would be good to know where to find the system's resident officers.

"Now," Rikyu cracked his knuckles as he floated over to his PC. "Time to go to work." He held up a piece of hard black plastic laced with thin strips of silver. He reached over and tapped a button. The time display on his monitor started counting the milli-seconds up from zero.

"What we have here is some sort of electrical component, obviously of the same make as most of the other pieces in my collection. Its use at this moment is indeterminate. Obviously it is designed to utilize my natural energies…." Rikyu continued his examination as he set the item on the counter in front of him. Behind him was a small collection of similar items.

Miho-Kiyo Residence:

"Wasn't it nice for Ryoko and Sasami to visit us like that?" Mihoshi asked as she paused from devouring her curry.

"Yeah, but why did she just run off like that?" Kiyone asked, more to herself than Mihoshi.

"Oh, you know Ryoko," Mihoshi waved that off. "She's always disappearing somewhere."

"Yeah, but its still not like her to leave Sasami behind," Kiyone said. "That's one common thread in that household. Everyone keeps an eye on Sasami."

"We, mehbe she juff rehmmbehe somthinn," Mihoshi said through a fool mouth.

"Or saw someone," Kiyone realized. She had already suspected. Now, Rikyu's comment combined with Ryoko's actions made it a surety. Ryoko recognized Rikyu, and she left before he could see her.

"Mihoshi, I'm going up to the Yagami and check some files," Kiyone said. Then she inwardly cringed and put on her sweetest face requested in her sweetest voice. "Can you do me a favor and fold the clothes while I'm gone? It would really help me." 

"Oh really, Kiyone?" Mihoshi beamed. "Yes, I'll be glad to help, all the clothes will be folded and ready when you get back!" Kiyone suspected that the clothes would all be in shreds and tatters, but there wasn't much this time and it would get Mihoshi off her back for a little while.

Masaki residence

"It is very good of you to treat Sasami, Ryoko," Ayeka admitted haughtily. "But where, might I ask, are you getting the money?" Ryoko was just staring into space and eating. This was unusual, given the opening for irritation Ayeka had just opened.

"Are you listening to me, Ryoko!!" Ayeka yelled. She stood up and turned to the space pirate. "Ryoko!!" Tenchi shook his head and prayed the property damage wouldn't be too much.

"Onesan," Sasami muttered softly, a little embarrassed.

"Ryoko," Yosho called in his normal quiet, authoritative voice. Ayeka had a lot to learn about leadership. Ryoko blinked.

"Huh?" Ryoko asked, pulling out of her reverie. "What is it?" She sounded a little annoyed, but not to her normal level in dealing with Ayeka.

"I was asking you where you got the money to treat Sasami today!" Ayeka snapped. "Which of us are you stealing it from?"

"The money?" Tenchi caught her blushing a little before she continued. "I…uh…won it gambling."

"Gambling!" Ayeka declared angrily. "Of course you'd be gambling, you couldn't do honest work if your life depended on it!"

"But you don't do anything either, Ayeka," Sasami noted, in her usual way.

"That is not the point," Ayeka said snobbishly. "The point is that she has no sense of responsibility what so ever. She's gone all day, probably watching Lord Tenchi at his school, while we stay here and do the chores, like proper guests." Tenchi kept waiting for Ryoko to step into the argument as she normally did, he already had his escape route planned out.

Ryoko, however, had returned to her reverie and seemed to not even hear the fuming princess.

"Ryoko, are you okay?" Tenchi asked. Ryoko blinked again.

"Oh, I'm fine," she assured him. "Never better, just remembering things. That's all. Thanks for the lovely meal Sasami, excuse me." Ryoko floated up from the floor and vanished.

"Oh," Ayeka fumed angrily. "That woman is up to something!!"

Jurai checkpoint:

The Jurai soldier stared suspiciously at the sleek black and red spacecraft waiting to be shuffled through the checkpoint. The soldier turned from the monitor to look at the captain of the vessel.

"The reason for your visit is tourism?" he asked in disbelief.

"The old stories say much about the beauty of this part of the universe," he smiled. "Call me curious, I wanted to see the places where so much history occurred."

"The first Akuneko to cross the dead zone for several thousand years," the soldier stated. "Is here for tourism?"

"A bit silly I agree, but it is the truth," the man pulled back his head to reveal a set of black spiky hair. "Trust me, sir, the war ended with the death of the Shinku tyrants." If anything the comment made the soldier even more suspicious, it was pure propaganda. What with the Kagato/Yosho thing being so recent it was perfectly obvious to him. Still there was nothing about the man or the ship that was illegal. He'd report this, and the man would be watched, but there was nothing much else he could do.

"Well, what else can I say?" the Jurai soldier asked tightly. "Welcome to Jurai space, Rei Kuroi, enjoy your stay."

"Oh, I most certainly will," the man smiled as he teleported to his ship and made ready to continue his journey.

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	2. No Need for Questions

No Need for Questions

Yagami in extreme earth orbit:

"It doesn't make sense," Kiyone complained. Earth records were complete on Shirai Rikyu. He was mainly an antique dealer/collector, but he had a number of small businesses operating throughout Tokyo. Of which her most recent employer was one of them. Apparently he hadn't been in Tokyo for the last four years. "Wait a minute, according to this, he should be at least forty years old."

The man she had seen earlier didn't look more than twenty or so for an Earth human. It was an interesting point.

"Yagami, scan the Earth records for the name Rikyu, go back a thousand years," the computer quickly produced a list of hits. Unfortunately there were far too many to be useful. "Okay, cross reference the hits with instances of myth and legend." The natives on these backwoods planets often mistook technology for some sort of magic. 

The computer returned with a much shorter list, but there were still far too many. Kiyone leaned back and thought on the problem. Then she remembered the comment about her earring.

"Cross reference with Galaxy Police files for this region over the same time period," the computer came back with one hit.

"The demon war," Kiyone noted. "And case number 348502. I vaguely remember that." Kiyone looked an Earth twenty, but she was much older. Her people had long ago perfected such techniques as gene therapy and age retardation. Some times they even outlived the Jurai royalty. She didn't mention it much, she always thought that she should have come further in twelve decades. It was embarrassing enough for people to think she was only twenty and still nowhere.

Kiyone skimmed the reports and marked them so they'd be easy to find later.

"Yagami, give me the file on Ryoko," the computer took a little longer here. Connecting with the galaxy net was actual work for it. The report came up quickly though, right from Ryoko's first appearance to the recent pardon she had received from Jurai. She scanned the file, quickly growing bored when she noticed something.

"Ah ha!" she declared. She leaned back in her chair, satisfied for the night. "Yagami transport me home." She was soon walking into her apartment. "Mihoshi I'm…oh…ugh!" She shook her head in disgust as she looked at the pile of clothes and Mihoshi. 

How her partner had gotten entangled in that position, she'd never know, and didn't want to. It didn't surprise her that Mihoshi had some how fallen asleep in the impossible position. Kiyone reached over and unhooked the bra that seemed to be the key to holding Mihoshi captive. The blonde sprung loose, knocking Kiyone away, and then curled up in her normal sleeping position.

Kiyone grumbled as she stood up and walked to her sleeping mat. She didn't bother to wake up Mihoshi and tell her to change. For Mihoshi a sweater and jeans worked as well as a set of pajamas. At the moment she was tired enough it didn't matter to her either. She just plopped on her mat and joined her partner in snoring.

Masaki residence _EARLY _morning:

Ryoko opened first one eye, then, when she was sure no one was about, the other. She quietly sat up off the couch and turned her head left and right, making sure no one was watching her. Yesterday had been a very bizarre day, but it didn't change matters much. She'd just have to avoid that place now. Still, she was curious, maybe she'd talk to Kiyone later, or better yet, Mihoshi. The blonde wouldn't reach the more annoying conclusions.

She tiptoed quietly over to a cabinet nobody used much and took out a little bag. Then she checked once more to make sure that nobody was watching her and teleported away. No nothing had changed at all, she knew about this when she came to Earth.

"So I was right," Ayeka declared. "She is up to something. It's probably some underhanded trick to seduce Lord Tenchi. Well, we'll see about _that!"_

A bar in space:

"Earth?" a scrawny little man repeated, surprised. "Why would you want to go to a little dirt ball like that?"

"The point isn't to give you information," the cloaked man said. "Is it?" A sphere of energy began to form over his outstretched hand.

"It is just a few hours travel from here," the informant offered, terrified. "On the fifth vector, but there's nothing there worth seeing, stealing, or doing."

"Well there's no problem in giving me this information then, is there?" the cloaked man dropped a few Jurai bills and teleported away. At one of the tables another cloaked figure stood up and walked out the door. The figure carried an energy whip at her side, and as she walked a white cabbit jumped to her shoulder.

"Well, Ken-Ohki," she said. "It seems that Ryoko is going to have a visitor." 

The cabbit meowed questioningly. 

"Why else would anyone go to Earth but to hunt someone in the Masaki household?" 

Ken-Ohki meowed worriedly, the figure's small mouth crinkled in irritation. 

"I'm sure Ryo-Ohki is fine, Ken-Ohki." 

The cabbit meowed happily, then meowed another question.

"Yes you can have some carrots!" the figure yelled. "But first we are going to ask this person what interest they have in Earth."

The Akuneko ship

"It seems I have a second tail," the cloaked man said to himself. He scanned the databanks to identify the class of the ship following him. He wasn't familiar with all the craft of this region, which was what they had spies for. "A cabbit? I have heard of these creatures." He placed the control collar around his neck and, once the controls were connected to his battle suit, shut off the autopilot. The ship was virtually an extension of him now, and it pulled a sudden stop, letting the cabbit rocket past him.

"Damn! Ken-Ohki switch back!" The large, white, spiny space ship spun about a hundred and eighty degrees and faced the smaller Akuneko ship. "FIRE!!!"

A pinwheel of beams ranged out from the ship-form cabbit, racing for the needle like Akuneko fighter. The Akuneko rolled out and dodged the attack and returned fire on its own. A large red beam that left behind a "wake" of three energy discs.

"That looked like Ryoko's blast attack!" Nagi shouted as Ken-Ohki dodged the blast. It was followed by four more, smaller blasts of similar nature. Ken-Ohki shook a little as the shields deflected the majority of the attack. "I'll worry about the firing, Ken-Ohki, just keep us moving.

A cloaked face appeared on a hologram screen in front of Nagi.

"Who are you?" the man asked snidely. The Akuneko fighter rolled past another barrage of energy blasts from Ken-Ohki.

"Isn't that my question?" Nagi asked. "After all, you are the one that initiated this conflict." Ken-Ohki went into a seemingly wild spin to dodge the Akuneko's blasts.

"You fired first, but I am the stranger here," he smiled confidently. "So I will introduce myself first. I am Rei of the Kuroi clan, a warrior of the Akuneko. And you are?" The fighter blasted forward, past Ken-Ohki, dodging energy blasts as it passed.

"I am Nagi," the man paused a little in apparent confusion. Obviously this woman thought that the single name was enough of an identification. Then he remembered something and smiled. Ken-Ohki rotated again to face the Akuneko craft as it whipped around and started another pass. This time there was barrage of energy blasts with it, those that struck bounced harmlessly off of Ken-Ohki's shields.

"Ah yes, you're in the file. We shouldn't be fighting," the man said. "After all our goal is the same. The death of Ryoko." Nagi laughed as she diverted Rei's attack with a barrage of her own, forcing him to concentrate on dodging.

"I'll defeat Ryoko on my own," Nagi declared. "Without any help from fools claiming to be legends. You have me beat on maneuverability, but everything else is in my favor." The Akuneko fighter dived for the surface of a planet the dueling space craft were passing. Ken-Ohki followed.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Rei produced his own smirk. "But our business with Ryoko is older than yours, and if you won't help then you must be dealt with." The agile fighter, better designed for atmosphere fighting than the almost symmetric cabbit ship, weaved into and out of canyons as the larger ship fired on it from above. The hologram went dead and all three being concentrated on the battle.

They came to wide-open range with no canyons for the Akuneko fighter to hide in. Rei blew everything to his engines and made a straight run away from the cabbit. Nagi smiled predatorily as she slowly gained ground on the smaller craft. 

It was still managing some basic dodging routines, but Rei's piloting had removed the possibility of any more extreme maneuvers. The only really annoying thing was the constant barrage of backward directed blasts. These were by far the weakest attack the "Akuneko" had directed at her yet, but the impacts on the shields were obscuring the area. Then the Akuneko took an almost ninety degree turn straight up and a cliff face came into view directly ahead of Ken-Ohki

"Ken-Ohki, pull up!!!" the war craft almost managed to clear the cliff, but a good portion struck the wall. Then Nagi was thrown forward of her control station as Ken-Ohki rolled across the ground until he finally came to a stop. "DamnDamnDamn!!!"

Nagi recovered her feet quickly and instantly scanned the damage report. They were grounded for now, but weapons and shields were still active, weaker, but they were active. Nagi scanned the skies around her and saw the Akuneko bearing down for a strafing run, and brought her own weaponry to bear. The Akuneko broke off and rocketed past the crippled cabbit one more time.

"I don't have time to continue this," the man appeared on her hologram again. "I'll bring Ryoko your regards." He smiled again, before blinking his communiqué off.

"Damn you!!! I'll get you, you damn fraud!"

Masaki residence, late afternoon:

"Miss Kiyone," Ayeka said surprised. Then her eyes narrowed and she added, in an irritated voice. "And Miss Mihoshi, what are you two doing here?"

"Oh we just thought we'd drop on in after work," Mihoshi said cheerfully. "Kiyone said it's been a while since we've visited you know, and we'd like to repay Sasami's and Ryoko's visit yesterday, and well, I don't know. Kiyone said we should drop by." Kiyone had her hand to her face and was shaking her head in despair.

"Oh Mihoshi and Kiyone!" Sasami called from the living room. "Have you come for dinner? That's wonderful!"

"Hi Sasami!" Mihoshi waved cheerfully. Tenchi walked out from the back saw the two detectives as Ayeka stepped aside to let them in.

"Guess what Mihoshi," Sasami chimed smugly. "I got another beanie baby yesterday."

"Oh, hi guys," Tenchi waved. "Haven't seen you around for a week or so."

"What really, oh let me see! Let me see!" Mihoshi yelled and followed a gloating Sasami back to see her latest collection.

"Since you are here," Ayeka began. For once didn't cringe as she listened for the inevitable request to investigate Ryoko's actions. "Ryoko has been acting very strangely recently, I think she's up to something dirty and underhanded. Why this morning she snuck out of the house before the sunrise carrying a little bag!" Tenchi and Kiyone stared at the ranting princess, embarrassed for her.

"Come on you guys," Kiyone griped, glancing Ayeka's way with a lecturing stare. "I'm not a private eye, you can't just send me out to investigate people because you think they might be skipping chores."

"Ryoko was acting kind of strange yesterday," Tenchi put in. "It might really be something this time."

"Hey, where's Ryoko," Mihoshi called from the back to Kiyone's horror. "Because Kiyon-"

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" snapped Kiyone, hand over Mihoshi's mouth. Then she turned back to the suddenly curious Tenchi and Ayeka, and laughed, before continuing in a resigned voice. "Well okay, just this once, but I'm not making this an everyday thing though." The effect had already been ruined by Mihoshi's outburst.

"We don't know where she is," Sasami said, sounding a little worried. "And she seemed so sad yesterday."

"Grrr…we don't know where she is on any day!" Ayeka snapped. "Today is no different. She's gone all day and then when she's here she sleeps, or else just sits around watches TV or eat. It's all she's done since we came here." Ryoko popped into existence at that point and stretched out her body.

"Oh, hi guys," Ryoko waved wearily to Kiyone and Mihoshi. "Sorry about running out on you yesterday I wanted to…*" She sat down on the couch and promptly pulled a Mihoshi by falling dead asleep.

"Check her breath," Ayeka suggested.

"Ayeka," Tenchi lectured her.

"She's not drunk," Kiyone said. "It seems she's just exhausted."

"Exhausted?" Ayeka said in disbelief. "What has she done to be exhausted? Well wake her up and ask her what she's been doing!"

"This isn't all that important," Tenchi suggested. "You could let her sleep."

"Oh, let me through," Ayeka shouldered her way to the snoring Ryoko, and then started shaking the space pirate. "Wake up, you beastly woman!! We want to talk to you."

"I finished the room!" Ryoko yelled, as Ayeka's efforts proved effective. Everybody backed off a foot from the virtually leaping Ryoko. "Huh? What? Where am I?" She sat back down and almost immediately started snoring again.

"I told you she's drunk," Ayeka said triumphantly. She had some how recovered her properly demure voice. Ryoko snapped awake again.

"I am not drunk," Ryoko insisted. She stood up and walked into the kitchen and came back with a Megavolt cola. Or at least that was what it was called officially. Most people called it caffeine in a can. "So what did you want princess?"

"We want to know why you keep disappearing during the day," Ayeka snapped. "Why can't you do your chores like all the rest of the us?"

"You won't find me wasting my time with all that," Ryoko sniped. "I have better things to do."

"Like what, gambling? Stealing? Blowing things up?" Ayeka yelled. "That _is_ all your good for, isn't it!"

"Oh like you'd know an honest days work if it bit you on the ass?" Both women growled and the characteristic sparks began flying between them.

"Hey, Ryoko," it was Mihoshi's voice. Kiyone moved toward the blonde with a speed born of a terror that no one but her could truly understand. "Why'd you leave so suddenly yesterday?" Ryoko was instantly distracted from the building fight. Everybody stared in shock, that had rarely happened before. Well, not Ayeka, if anything she was more annoyed now than ever.

"Oh that?" Ryoko waved aside the question. "I just remembered something we left at the last stop. By the way, what's your boss like?"

"Ryoko, in case you haven't noticed you still haven't answered my question."

"Excuse me, Ayeka," Tenchi interrupted. "But I don't want to have to ask Washu to rebuild anything just yet." He escorted a fuming Ayeka out of the room, until she noticed that she was going to be alone with Tenchi. That was when she returned to her ultra sweet voice and attitude, much to Tenchi's discomfort. Ryoko didn't react at all, which was odd.

"Hirata-San?" Mihoshi said in response to Ryoko. "He's okay I guess, but he's always yelling for some reason." Sasami yawned and wandered off, this was getting fairly boring, and she had dinner to cook anyway.

"No, no," Ryoko stopped Mihoshi before she could continue. "The other guy, with the red hair."

"Oh, he's very nice," Mihoshi said. "He didn't yell at all, even when I spilled his soup all over the floor." Kiyone noted Ryoko smiling smugly.

"What's your interest, Ryoko," Kiyone asked. Ryoko and Kiyone locked eyes, and prepared for the coming interrogation.

"Nothing much," Ryoko insisted. "He just looked familiar, that's all."

"How could he look familiar," Kiyone asked. "He hasn't been in Tokyo for years."

"And how do you know that?"

"I have my secrets."

"Really, is that so?"

"Why did you come to Earth in the first place?"

"Your partner chased me into the solar system and I crash landed." Ryoko gave the obvious answer and her eyes narrowed more. "Just how much does she guess or even know." Ryoko thought to herself.

"I mean the first time."

"The first time?" Ryoko repeated. Kiyone smiled, she had Ryoko on the run now, victory was assured, and even Mihoshi had quieted down as the word duel continued. Then their GP beepers went off.

"Oh no," Mihoshi shouted. "It's a major alert!"

"Well I guess we'll have to continue this later," Ryoko smiled. Kiyone glared at her, Ryoko would be avoiding her now.

"Come on Mihoshi! We have a flat to fix!"

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	3. No Need for Assassins

No Need for Assassins

Yagami extreme Earth orbit

"Okay, Mihoshi," Kiyone said irritably. "Let's see what hayseed wants us to perform maintenance on their craft this time."

"Yes sir, Kiyone," Mihoshi responded chipper. Kiyone glared at her and then flipped the communication screen on. She had almost cracked Ryoko when this call came in. Major alert in this solar system often meant a broken down engine or even air conditioner in one case.

"Detectives 1st class Mihoshi and Kiyone," the face on the other side of the screen was the current sergeant of detectives, Kiyone immediately snapped to attention. This had not been her day. "You may have a situation."

"What is the problem, sir?" Kiyone asked. The image on the screen shifted to show a sleek, needle-shaped black and red craft. Next to the craft was the portrait of a man with spiky black hair and vertically slitted pupils. Kiyone's eyes narrowed, this was the second time in as many days she had seen someone that seemed to be from Ryoko's species.

"This is Rei Kuroi, he passed the Jurai frontier several days ago on the claim that he was a tourist."

"Crossed the frontier?" Kiyone repeated. "But sir, the Jurai frontier reaches the end of the galaxy. There's nothing but dead space beyond it."

"And beyond that dead space are the Akuneko. This man claims to be one of them."

"Could he be lying sir?" Kiyone asked. "No one ever saw what the Akuneko looked like, he could just be some bandit that skimmed the frontier for a few parsecs. The Akuneko haven't been around for over two-thousand years"

"We have no records on this man previous to this," her superior answered. "And we do not have any record on the make of his craft. As if that were not enough, we and the Jurai both lost sight of him after he had a tussle with Nagi." The screen showed highlights of the battle. "We do not know what has become of the bounty hunter now, they finished the battle on an uninhabited planet with heavy cloud cover. The Akuneko came out the winner." A light blinked on beneath the monitor.

"Hey isn't that..." Kiyone held out her hand to quiet Mihoshi.

"We do not know where this man is now, but his conflict with Nagi suggests an interest in Ryoko. Nagi would not have attacked a bountyless man otherwise. That suggests that he may be heading your way."

"Understood sir," Kiyone answered. "We'll keep an eye out. Kiyone and Mihoshi out." They saluted and then Kiyone switched the communication screen.

"Kiyone, you have trouble," Nagi was staring them in the face. She sounded like she was in pain.

"Rei Kuroi?"

"How did you know?"

"Our superior just told us about your fight with him," Mihoshi put in. "Are you and Ken-Ohki okay?" The screen panned back and the view behind Nagi revealed not the spacious and magnificent bridge of Ken-Ohki, but a battered mess. The bounty hunter was clutching her shoulder where a bloodstain was slowly growing.

"Oh my goodness."

"That little ship did that?"

"Little bastard ran me into a cliff, neat trick." Nagi sounded impressed. "We'll be fine," Nagi said in response to the concerned looks. "But Ken-Ohki is grounded for the moment, and I'm not in much better condition. The important thing is that this Kuroi is on his way to kill Ryoko."

"But don't you want to kill Ryoko?" Mihoshi asked.

"That's why your partner has to make sure she stays alive."

"I see," Kiyone answered dryly. "Thanks for the warning. Did he mention why he wanted to kill Ryoko?"

"He claimed that he was Akuneko," Nagi said. "So I don't see what legitimate reason he could have."

"New HQ believes that he came from across dead space," Kiyone told Nagi.

"You mean he really is Akuneko?" Nagi asked surprised.

"Yes."

"Interesting, it might explain why I had so much trouble with him," Nagi commented. "Be careful detectives, Nagi out." The screen vanished.

"Come on Mihoshi," Kiyone ordered. "We have to find Ryoko and get to the bottom of all this."

"Right, we can't let this Rei person get her. No matter what she did to him."

They were soon storming into the Masaki house, still in uniform.

"Where's Ryoko?" Kiyone yelled.

"So she was doing something," Ayeka snapped. "Off robbing banks or something wasn't she!"

"Actually there's this really nasty guy named Rei Kuroi who's on his way here to kill her."

"What?!" Tenchi shouted. Sasami gasped, Ryo-Ohki meowed in surprise, and a muffled "serves her right" came from Ayeka. "Where did you here that?"

"The sergeant of detectives and Nagi," Kiyone answered. "Where is she?"

"Yeah, Nagi had a fight with him, and now she and Ken-Ohki are beat up real bad."

"What?" Sasami yelled. Ryo-Ohki was meowing hysterically. "Are they going to be okay?" Sasami asked quietly.

"Nagi said they'd be fine," Kiyone answered. "Where is she?"

"After you left she disappeared," Tenchi said. "I assume she'll be back tomorrow."

"That may be too late."

"I believe I know where she's going," Washu declared. Everybody turned to face the diminutive genius, who was grinning ear to ear. "But first you have to tell me what the Akuneko want with Ryoko." She'd been spying on Ryoko for the past few days, it seemed to be the only mildly entertaining activity at the time.

"The…of course _you_ would know. But how?"

"The name Kuroi," Washu said. "It was one of the clans involved in the conflict. They and the Shinku were the two highest ranked clans."

"The Akuneko," Ayeka said, chilled. "They haven't crossed dead space for ages."

"When the Shinku were defeated the Kuroi pulled away from Jurai space. They would have had to soon any way, they way were far too depleted afterwards to take on the Jurai alone, but they were terrible warriors, and why do you think they're after Ryoko?" Washu turned to Kiyone again.

"I think Ryoko _is_ Akuneko," Kiyone told them. Everybody stared at her, stunned. "So where is Ryoko?"

"She's been training with Yosho recently," Washu told them. "She didn't like the way Kagato beat her so easily. She'll be up in the woods with him most likely. Recently she's been acting quite out of her normal character, actually."

"Training with grandpa?" Tenchi asked. "Why didn't either of them say anything."

"And admit to us that she needed help," Kiyone explained. "She's a little to proud for that. Come on Mihoshi."

Outside the Masaki shrine

Ryoko was bouncing from peg to peg, using a bokken to hit a piece of wood on a rope back and forth. It seemed quite pointless to her, but Yosho was the most experienced warrior among them. If he said this would help her improve, she had to believe it.

"You're improving, Ryoko," Yosho encouraged her from the side. He was sitting with his bokken leaning against his neck. "But you should be getting more sleep. You're moving a little slower than you could."

"Okay, so I'm learning how to use this stick," Ryoko started, still working on that piece of wood, and trying not to use any of her natural powers. "But I'll never be able to channel Jurai energy, so what good does it do me?"

"Do you think that in a real fight I bounce around on one foot wailing at an arbitrary point in the air," Yosho asked, then he laughed. "That would be silly wouldn't it?"

"So if you don't use this, yourself," she asked. "Why do it?"

"You still think of fighting skills as a physical thing," Yosho said, shaking his head. "Run the kata series I taught you, I'm going to the shrine for a moment."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, old man," she muttered as she started running the first kata of the series.

"And when I return, perhaps we'll test you against me," Yosho informed her. Ryoko winced, and stuck her tongue out at his back before starting the kata again.

The house of Rikyu Shirai

"The item appears to be some sort of scanner," Rikyu was saying. "I'm not certain what it is supposed to scan for, but…" He stopped recording as the device came alive in his hand. To his surprise a circular hologram began to be projected from the device. It showed several red blips and one yellow one moving at high speed. "The device appears to have activated itself, I think it is tracking some sort of craft." 

He stared at the yellow dot in curiosity. The hologram shifted to show a sleek black and red needle-like craft against a starfield. There was a readout but he couldn't read the language. He knew a large variety of Earth languages, and the common trade tongue of the space, but that was about it.

"The device seems to be activated by thought," it was something he had encountered before. "And it is indeed tracking what appear to be space craft, perhaps I should contact those two Galaxy Police detectives about this craft." The starfield vanished into a blue sky, which quickly darkened to twilight. It was only a little ways away from the city now.

Yosho's training grounds

"Katas and hitting sticks," Ryoko griped. "How'd he get to be such a strong warrior doing stuff like this."

"Well, Lady Shinku," Ryoko froze. She hadn't been called that in well over two hundred years. "It seems that you have completed your clan's fall from grace, learning the arts of the enemy. Still seducing our operative into reporting you were dead was a clever idea." Ryoko turned about to face her enemy.

"I've told you people before," she said, turning about. Her opponent was cloaked as was normal. "My name is Ryoko, I don't know anything about these clans of yours."

"We don't care what you know Lady Shinku, just what you are." the man dropped his cloak and smiled at her. "By the way, don't you want to know what happened to that peasant who helped you?"

"Damn, he's already in battle armor." she thought. Indeed the man was in the same kind of battle suit she wore when there was real trouble on the way. "I assume it wasn't anything nice." Ryoko set the bokken down behind her against a tree.

"Oh, Renshi had an interesting last few hours in life," he told her. "He told us everything, before we let him die." Ryoko snarled.

"Let's get this over with," Ryoko snapped.

"Indeed, know that it is Rei of the Kuroi clan that has slain you" the man pointed at her and shot a blast of red energy at Ryoko. The space pirate teleported out of the way and appeared in the air above her opponent. She sliced down with her energy blade only to be blocked by another.

"We'll see about that, buddy," Ryoko rebounded off Rei's energy sword and brought it around again with a burst of borrowed speed. The other blocked and riposted as well, and they entered the dance of a flight powered sword battle. She was better, she could feel it, the moves felt more natural, and they flowed easier from position to position. She could win this battle.

"Very good for an uneducated amateur like yourself," Rei said. "But I am no peasant assassin." A second energy blade appeared in Rei's off hand and Ryoko suddenly on the defensive again. She dodged, blocked and teleported with absurd speed trying to stay one step ahead of the whirling blades.

"I'm not out of tricks yet, bastard!" Ryoko blasted out with her off hand. Rei dodged easily and lashed out with what would be called a hilt punch, catching Ryoko in the face.

"You call that a trick?" he chided her. He began again to press his attack, driving Ryoko to the ground and back to a tree, before forcing her energy sword wide and successfully disrupting it.

"Go ahead, kill me," Ryoko shouted defiantly. "You still can't win." She smiled up at the man. She knew their goals, and at least she had the pleasure of knowing something he didn't.

"Oh I'm afraid I can, Lady Shinku," Rei smiled as he raised one of his blades. "Like I said, Renshi told us everything." Her eyes widened in terrified realization, as the blade descended she screamed.

"Nooo!!!!!!" The blade never landed, it was disrupted in mid strike by a yellow laser beam.

"You are in violation of Galaxy Law," Kiyone declared confidently. "Release the weapon and step away from her." Mihoshi shook nervously behind her partner, staring at the Akuneko. Rei laughed at them.

"And what do you barbarians think you can do to me?" He teleported behind them, planning to slice the detectives in two. As soon as he vanished Kiyone smiled, and turned her laser to face backwards. She fired as soon as she heard the teleport behind her.

"Aah!! Damn you!!" the man shouted. He didn't have much time to elaborate as Kiyone followed the shot through with pummeling barrage of kicks and punches. The Akuneko was heavily favoring his left side where Kiyone marked a burn mark from her laser. 

He finally managed to block a couple of strikes and return one of his own. Rei was much stronger than Kiyone and the Galaxy Police detective flew backwards against a tree.

"Kiyone!!" Mihoshi yelled, as she started firing a swarm of wild laser blasts. The Akuneko managed to raise a force field and smiled at the ineffectual attacks. Until he heard Ryoko's war cry and saw the red energy blade cutting through his field. The assassin quickly vanished, and reappeared high in the air.

"We'll find you later, Ryoko," the man laughed. "Right now I have other prey."

"Like hell you do!! Get back here bastard!" she launched an energy blast at the already teleporting Rei. "Damn it!! Kiyone, you have to take me to Rikyu now!" The Galaxy Police detective stood up from her collision and face Ryoko.

"I'm right, aren't I?" Kiyone asked, dusting herself off.

"Right about what?" Mihoshi asked, clueless as usual. Ryoko glared at them.

"Yes," Ryoko admitted. 

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	4. No Need for a Battle

No Need for a Battle

Masaki Residence

A furious Ryoko teleported into the living room of the Masaki house and immediately rushed into the bathroom.

"I think they found Ryoko," Sasami noted. Shortly behind this Kiyone and Mihoshi came in through the front door.

"Hey!" Nobuyuki yelled, he had finally gotten home. "Doesn't anyone knock anymore?"

"What is going on here?" Ayeka demanded. "This is the second time tonight that you've come barging in here. Why I've never been so insulted in my life."

"He's already here isn't he," Tenchi concluded, resignedly. Next to him Washu nodded in agreement.

"Yes and since he couldn't beat us, he's going…*" Kiyone clamped her hand over Mihoshi's mouth.

"There's someone else on this planet that he wants to kill," Kiyone explained. "We're going to try and stop him." Yosho sauntered in through the open door, but as usual no one noticed until he said something.

"Tenchi you should go with them," Yosho instructed. "I saw the tail end of the battle, they'll need the help." Tenchi nodded, he had already been planning to, he was up to his room and back with the sword-Tenchi in almost a blink.

"If Lord Tenchi is going than I will go to," Ayeka declared. She stomped off to the bathroom, grumbling.

"And I shall also battle this fiend with you," Mihoshi said dramatically. Kiyone winced.

"Uh, Mihoshi," she started. "I was actually kind of hoping that you would guard the house in case he came back."

"Oh, you know, you're right," Mihoshi gasped. "I'll stay here and guard the house." Kiyone breathed a sigh of relief. Yosho was amused, he caught Kiyone's eyes and she shrugged, to which he just waved a "don't worry." Ayeka and Ryoko burst out of the bathroom, both in full battle gear.

"You know that I'm not doing this to help you, Ryoko," Ayeka sniped. "I am here to safe guard Lord Tenchi."

"Tenchi, if I might make a slight change."

"What is it Washu, we shouldn't take too long." There was a flash of light and suddenly Tenchi was in battle gear as well. The two women who geared up the old fashioned way glared at her.

"You didn't ask," Washu shrugged.

"Let's go, let's go!" Ryoko snapped. Tenchi, Kiyone, and Ayeka followed closely behind the rushing Ryoko. Outside they all piled into what appeared to be a hovering sport utility vehicle. Kiyone stepped into the driver's seat, of course.

"Yagami," the vehicles onboard computer linked up with the Yagami's computer orbiting Earth. "Plot me a course to Rikyu Shirai's dwelling." A head's up display appeared with a line heading out into town. Kiyone sent the thing moving, accelerating up to two hundred in a matter of seconds.

The House of Rikyu Shirai

The scanner showed the ship moving again, through the high clouds and Rikyu watched it. It didn't move very far this time. Then a beam burst from the ship and Rikyu heard the sound of an explosion not all that far away. Then the radio began blaring static until a voice began speaking in space common.

"I seek Rikyu Shinku," the voice declared. "Either he shows himself, or you all will pay." Another explosion sounded. Rikyu had dropped the scanner so he didn't see the hologram ship fire, but he didn't need to.

"Well," he said to himself. "I've never run from a fight before." He teleported away and reappeared floating above his house. His normally hidden tail waved angrily behind him as he used one of his relics to respond to the challenge.

"Alright! Come and get me, asshole!"

"As you wish." Rikyu whirled to see a man with the same sort of spiky hair as his, only this man had black hair. The red and black suit the man was wearing didn't have any of the silver tracings, but it was undoubtedly the same material as Rikyu's own bracers. The thought of an entire power-enhancing suit made his blood run cold. The man was laughing at him, floating around him in circles. "I don't see what chance you have, boy. Your nobility is tainted with peasant blood, you have absolutely no training and I doubt you've even been as far off this planet as that fuel station past the asteroid belt."

"Are you going to talk or fight?"

"Yes, there is a definite family resemblance." The man smiled. Each of the pair summoned an energy blade and the battle began.

Kiyone's Hover Cruiser 

"What exactly did you do to these people, Ryoko," Ayeka demanded. Ryoko glanced in her direction before returning to watch their progress.

"Every time they show up it's always talk about this clan and that clan, I don't know what they're talking about."

"Every time?" Kiyone repeated. "How many of them have tried to kill you."

"Six, counting this guy and Renshi." They saw the first beam strike a building a few miles away, then Kiyone's radio, which had been playing some American music station, broadcast Rei's challenge. Another building exploded, this time almost on top of them, and Kiyone had to enter some actual flight to avoid the debris. Then the radio played Rikyu's answer.

"Damn it, Kiyone, when are we going to get there?"

"We're here," The hover vehicle came to an abrupt stop in front of a small house of older design. They could see flashes of red in the quickly darkening sky above. Kiyone exited the vehicle quickly and tried to draw a bead on the assassin, but the two figures were moving too quickly for a safe shot. "Damn." Kiyone made for the roof while Ryoko shot into the air like a missile.

"Your even more pathetic than your mother," Rei was laughing. He was arrogantly fighting with a single blade, but it didn't seem he needed another. He saw the approaching space pirate then and laughed. "Why, speak of the devil, that is the proper expression isn't it?" He frowned when he saw the battle suit she was wearing.

"Get away from him!!" Ryoko slashed down with her own energy blade and met Rei's second blade. Rikyu glanced briefly at the second battle suit clad individual, and then returned to the battle. 

Tenchi and Kiyone watched the four red blurs framing the fierce faces of the three combatants. Tenchi couldn't reach them and Kiyone didn't have a clear shot. They didn't bother to turn around at the sound of Ayeka struggling to the top of the roof.

"They're coming back this way!" Tenchi shouted. Indeed the three flyers soon touched down on the street below and continued their battle in a manner more traditional for the planet. Tenchi leaped off the roof, over Ayeka The princess yipped in surprise and lost her grip on the edge and fell to the ground as a blue energy blade joined the battle. 

The grim-faced Rei was in desperate straits now. His edge over Ryoko was that he understood his own powers better. Against Ryoko in a battle suit _and _another Akuneko opponent that edge gave him a fighting chance and not much more. He was also still injured and every moment of adrenaline charged battle was aggravating that cauterized hole in his side. Now a third opponent had joined the battle, a skilled Jurai warrior-prince he assumed. He was lost and he knew it. 

He dodged to the side trying to isolate his opponents, splitting them up between the obstacles on the ground. The sudden appearance of several, small log-like objects around him couldn't be a good thing either. Rei raised a force field as the electrical discharge passed between the logs, dropping one of his blades to do so. He teleported across the street as the three blades came in. Lasers and electricity were one thing focused energy another thing entirely. As soon as he appeared, free and clear of the other warriors he had to face a stream of laser blasts. Two caught him before he could raise another force field, and now he couldn't feel his left arm.

"We'll finish this another time," he spat before teleporting away from his opponents. Kiyone managed one more salvo after his first short teleport and then he was gone. She immediately reached for GP pen and opened it. She took off her earring and lifted it to the sky.

"Yagami!" the large red, custom fitted Galaxy Police cruiser pulled out of orbit and was on site in moments. "Everybody on board now!" They didn't have much choice, one moment they were in the street, the next they were in Yagami's cargo bay. "He's coming around in his ship, Ryoko can you co-pilot?"

"Me?" Ryoko asked, shocked. "I've never piloted a cruiser in combat, that was always you and Mihoshi."

"Don't look at me," Tenchi added. "I just barely got used to this space ship thing."

"It's been awhile," Rikyu said, glancing at Ryoko. "But this is six-one type cruiser right?"

"That's right, case 348502," Kiyone noted, she was already heading for the bridge. Rikyu noted the long-forgotten feel of a space craft on autopilot exiting the atmosphere.

"The demon war," he corrected. Kiyone shrugged, a sort of voiceless "whatever" remark. "This has been refitted." Ryoko was almost glowing with pride as she watched the two rush down the corridor.

"So Ryoko," Ayeka began in that shrill lecturing tone she reserved for her rival. "You're one of the Akuneko, that explains why you're such a reprehensible person."

"Akuneko?" Ryoko repeated, disgusted. "Have you been in the saki again, the Akuneko are how I was orphaned. Besides they haven't been here since you people kicked them out."

"You're the drunk, not me!" Ayeka accused.

"Not now guys, we have enough problems as it is," Tenchi interrupted the growing fight. Ryoko sat down cross-legged and seemed to blank out.

Masaki residence

"What is it Ryo-Ohki?" Sasami asked. The cabbit had suddenly sprung to sitting straight up and pricked her ears as if listening to something. Then she rushed out of the house and leaped into the air, in the next instant a large, spiny space-craft was rocketing into the sky.

"Whoa!" Mihoshi exclaimed. "That was cool." Yosho merely raised an eyebrow.

"Where's Ryo-Ohki going?" Sasami asked.

"Into battle I assume," Yosho answered.

"I hope she's careful."

Yagami low earth orbit, the cargo bay.

"Ryo-Ohki is on the way," Ryoko said as soon as she came out of the trance.

"Well at least you're good for something," Ayeka griped. "But then again that was all the Akuneko were capable of, wasn't it. Blowing things up all over the border territories."

"Would you quit with that Akuneko stuff," Ryoko snapped.

"And who is that Rikyu person?" Ayeka continued undaunted. "Another space pirate vagabond, an old boyfriend or something?" Ryo-Ohki passed the windows as Ryoko glared at Ayeka.

"Figure it out yourself, princess, I'm busy." she snapped before teleporting to her own ship.

Yagami the bridge

"Where is he?" Kiyone asked herself. Their opponent hadn't broken the atmosphere yet, he was hiding in the planet's signature. "He knows we're up here."

"He'll try to come out another hemisphere," Rikyu added. Kiyone stared at him a moment. "What's that?" Rikyu said in alarm as another ship registered on the scope.

"Ryo-Ohki!" Kiyone said happily. "That's yo..uh…Ryoko's cabbit. You know a lot about space craft for someone who's lived on Earth his entire life." She silently chided herself for the lapse of control.

"Well, after the demon war, your colleague's let me keep Daylak's ship," he explained. "That was a six-one, too. Used to get over to the Jupiter station fairly regularly. The Cammon finally died about twenty years ago, it's somewhere out in the pacific. You seem to know what's going on here, why'd that guy attack me." A communication screen popped up with an angry looking Ryoko.

"He hasn't broken atmosphere yet?" Ryoko asked, surprised.

"Not yet," Kiyone confirmed.

"I'll cover the other side," Ryoko said then the screen blinked out. The spiny circle of Ryo-Ohki passed them and turned the corner around the horizon.

"Who is she?" Rikyu asked. "I know her from somewhere."

"You'll have to ask her that," Kiyone told him. "Not my place. As for our friend, he's Akuneko. They come from another galaxy, until now nobody knew exactly what they looked like."

"He looked like me," Rikyu noted. "And he kept talking about my mother. Your friend looks like me too."

"Yeah," Kiyone said. "I noticed. Anyway that guy is here to kill you and Ryoko for some reason."

The Masaki Residence

"Nobody go outside," Washu commanded, she was walking around and consulting numerous holographic consuls. "We have a visitor. Should be fun."

"What do you mean?" Nobuyuki asked.

"Is that Akuneko person here," Sasami asked. Washu opened a pair of communication screens to Yagami and Ryo-Ohki.

"Kiyone, Ryoko?" Washu asked.

"What is it, Washu we're busy," Ryoko said irritably.

"That is why I'm calling," Washu said. "Your friend is hovering over the Masaki house right now."

"What!? Hold on Washu we'll be right there!"

"Kiyone, have more faith in me than that," Washu lectured. "I was in the Akuneko wars, in fact I think you'll find I was the only here who was. The only other one old enough is Lord Yosho and he was on Earth at the time."

"So what are you talking to us for, blast that bastard out of the sky!"

"Ryoko, this is the first time the Akuneko have ever shown us their faces. The first time in two thousand or so years that they didn't sneak over the frontier. We need to take him alive if possible, something big is happening.."

"What's the plan Washu," Kiyone agreed with the evaluation.

"With Lord Yosho's help I think I can force him out of the atmosphere," she explained. "Once there it is up to you two to cripple his craft and capture him."

"Just get him up here, we'll do the rest," Ryoko's screen blinked out.

"We'll be ready too," Kiyone answered and then she also blinked out.

"And what do you want me to do?" Yosho asked curiously.

"I've seen you generate some powerful energy blasts," Washu noted. "And everything in my arsenal is likely not to leave anything behind." Yosho smiled, and bounced his bokken off his shoulder.

"So I am to be our weaponry, and you supply the defense," Yosho had already sensed the powerful force field surrounding them. "Let's get on with it then."

"That's just if I can't stall him long enough talking," Washu added.

The Akuneko fighter

"Shit," Rei continued massaging his injured arm, at least he could feel it now. "That green-haired bitch keeps getting in the way." He looked below him at the innocent looking house and noted the force field surrounding it. He snarled his lip.

"So much for that idea," he noted. "No way I'm getting through that thing." He was on the verge of leaving when a communication screen opened up to his right and he saw the pink-haired face of Washu.

"You know, this is the first time I've seen one of you," the scientist said cheerfully. "I've scanned your ship, much better design than what you people brought last time. You still operate on the swarm philosophy of combat don't you."

"Who are you?" Rei asked. He looked at his view screen and saw a gray haired man standing on the porch staring up into the sky.

"Oh, you don't know me? And I tested so many brilliant inventions on your forces," Washu smiled cutely.

"Washu?" Rei frowned. This was very bad.

"Correct!" Washu shouted. "You know you have no chance against me, so why don't you just surrender now and we'll talk about this."

"I don't think so, lady. I'm reading no weapons on your little cabin there, and I don't think grandpa there is going to be much help to you." Washu smiled.

"That's your choice then," she turned to look off the screen and yelled. "Lord Yosho?" the communication screen blinked off. Rei watched in shock and terror as the old man smiled and ejected a blast of blue energy in wave at his ship. Rei only barely managed to avoid the attack, surprised as he was by the source. Yosho charged up again and fired, forcing the Akuneko ship to turn away from its chosen path.

"He's herding me," Rei yelled. "Keeping me here, why?" After a few more exchanges the communication screen popped up with Washu's face again.

"Bye bye," she waved and then shut the screen off again. Suddenly some intense force pushed his craft ever upward out of the atmosphere, where the waiting warship could find him. As soon as the craft settled again, Rei scanned for his enemy and found two blips close by. He had studied these ships in specific, and had hoped not to face them. He was lucky with Nagi, but now he couldn't count on luck. This mission was proving very aggravating.

Yagami bridge

"You know," Tenchi started. "It's comforting not to be on the run in a battle for once." Kiyone nodded vigorously as she piloted the ship towards where the Akuneko had suddenly appeared. Ryo-Ohki was approaching fast from the other side.

"Let's try some magna missiles," Kiyone suggested. "Ryo-Ohki shouldn't have to worry, being mineral/organic. Can you handle the left hand launchers?"

"Yeah, this is much nicer than my ship was," Rikyu noted. "Easier to use too."

"Let's try the second spread pattern," Kiyone suggested. "Ready? Fire!" The Yagami launched a pair of missile salvos at the still disoriented Akuneko. Twelve missiles crossed the space in a breath and exploded around the Akuneko, releasing a huge electromagnetic field. The fighter remained still long enough for Ryo-Ohki to fire a beam at the aft portion of the fighter, destroying the thrusters.

"Rei Kuroi," Kiyone opened a screen to the enemy's ship, it took a moment for the fighter's systems to recover enough to get through. "I am 1st class Galaxy Police detective Kiyone Makibi, prepare to be boarded and placed under arrest."

"I don't have many more options do I?" Rei frowned at the detective. The mission to kill Ryoko and Rikyu was political, he had just found a personal cause. "But we'll see each other again Makibi, I can promise you that. When we have conquered this galaxy, you'll be kneeling before me before I take your head."

"Who are you?" Rikyu asked. Rei sniffed at him, as if Rikyu was something less than worthy of note.

"Our great enemies," he growled sarcastically. "The Shinku consist of nothing but a worthless space pirate and a half-breed youth. What a pointless assignment this was. At least your mother is a worthy warrior, you are pathetic."

"My mother?" Rikyu asked.

"What did he say?" Tenchi said from the back. "You're Ryoko's son?"

"You see Lord Tenchi," Ayeka piped in. "You see what sort of woman she is?"

"You didn't know!" Rei laughed. "Well at least I caused some disruption, come over and get me Detective. This conversation is over." The screen blinked out.

"Kiyone," Ryoko appeared on another communication screen. "We're coming aboard."

"Excuse me," Rikyu interrupted. Ryoko suddenly looked sick. "That guy said that you were my mother. Is that true?" Ryoko gulped and then took control of her emotions.

"Yes, it is."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	5. No Need for a Prisoner

No Need for a Prisoner

Yagami bridge low Earth orbit

"How is that possible?" Tenchi asked, Ryoko teleported to the bridge shortly before a yawning Ryo-Ohki. "Ryoko is, what, twenty…"

"Twenty-hundred seventeen years old, I think" Ryoko corrected. In response to his surprised expression she shrugged. "I did say I was orphaned by the Akuneko." She was avoiding returning Rikyu's inquiring stare.

"And you are," Tenchi gestured at Rikyu.

"Two hundred thirty one," Rikyu said. "Are you related to Katsuhito Masaki?"

"He's my grandfather, why?"

"You look a little like him."

"But how would you know Lord Yosho?"

What followed were simultaneous answers of "Case 348502" and "The demon war."

"Which of us was there?" Rikyu asked.

"Let's deal with this later," Tenchi interrupted. "We should get that psychopath locked up in something, first."

"Sorry Tenchi, your right," Kiyone piloted the ship close to the crippled Akuneko fighter. Hanging there motionless in space it no longer looked so dangerous, just a pathetic broken toy. "That thing's small enough that it'll fit in the cargo bay. Tenchi could you and Ryoko be there to make sure he behaves himself. Washu built me a brig a month ago, check the extra quarters."

"Right, let's go Tenchi," Ryoko agreed immediately, she'd have to talk to Rikyu later, but she wasn't prepared right now. She grabbed Tenchi and half-dragged him down the corridor.

"Hey Ryoko, give me a moment," Tenchi said as he turned about and shrugged off Ryoko's grip. Ayeka was just standing there open mouthed, until she realized that Ryoko and Tenchi were going off somewhere alone.

"Stop and wait for me this instant!" Ayeka snapped, before following the other two.

"Where'd the cabbit ship go," Rikyu asked Kiyone, he was in similar state of shock as Ryoko. Ryo-Ohki hopped up on the counsel and meowed a greeting at Kiyone.

"Hi, Ryo-Ohki," she answered negligently. Kiyone was busy pulling the ship into the Yagami's cargo bay, and watching for any sort of last card on the assassin's part. Rikyu looked down at the cutely smiling cabbit that just happened to have the same name as the cabbit ship. She meowed at him happily. If he could have sat down and discussed his thoughts with Tenchi he would have found a rather sympathetic ear.

The Masaki residence

"What's taking them so long?" Mihoshi asked, arms wrapped around a pained looking Washu. "You don't suppose anything went wrong do you?" Washu's eyes seemed to be bulging and she was biting her lip, which Mihoshi took as a bad sign. "Oh Kiiiiyooooneee, why'd I let you go off alone? Now you're all blown up!! WAAAAHH!!! " At this point Washu's face began turning blue.

"Mihoshi," Sasami began. "It's only been ten minutes since we last talked to them." Mihoshi let go of Washu, who immediately took a large breath and collapsed to the floor.

"Really," Mihoshi asked, then her voice returned to its usual hyper-cheerful tone. "Only ten minutes. Well that's okay then. Kiyone can handle it, no problem. Hey what's wrong with Washu?"

"She's just very relieved," Yosho answered.

Yagami cargo bay

"Two years ago I would have said that this was a huge ship," Tenchi noted.

"What do you mean, Lord Tenchi?" Ayeka asked. "It's a bare hundred feet long."

"Come on out of there asshole!" Ryoko yelled, pounding on the side of the ship. Rei Kuroi appeared in the middle of them all. He was slumped over to the right and his left arm was hanging limp, despite this he still smiled triumphantly. Ayeka backed off while Tenchi and Ryoko flanked him with energy swords glowing.

"So what do you do with me now?" he asked.

"You're lucky Washu thinks it's important to keep you alive." Ryoko growled. "Move."

"I misjudged your resources in our first conflict, Lady Shinku," he bowed respectfully to her, before limping down the corridor ahead of them. They reached the third living quarter and found it an empty room. There was nothing physically obvious, but Tenchi, Ayeka and Ryoko had, like most others in the Masaki crew, developed a sense about all things Washu. Tenchi and the girls glanced at the room apprehensively, trying to weigh threat of a Washu device compared to that of Rei Kuroi.

"Are you that terrified of me alone?" Rei laughed, his ego was deflated a little when they didn't react. If he weren't so drained from his injuries and the feedback of that EMP he'd take the opportunity to break free.

"Why do you think she built it?" Ryoko asked.

"She was probably bored," Ayeka answered. "I'm more concerned with how she built it."

"Yeah who knows what it's designed to do," Tenchi agreed.

"What are you talking about," Rei demanded, angrily. "It's just a bare room!" He arrogantly walked through the doorway. No of the three cared enough to warn him, they also thought that it was as good a test as any. Washu's hand revealed itself as soon as the Akuneko came under the door.

First, Rei was suddenly bombarded from all sides as a sheet of previously invisible energy was revealed. The warrior started producing motions that would make half the breakdancers and contortionists across the galaxy drool with envy. Then the assassin had the misfortune to fall forward into the room, this elicited the sudden appearance of several mechanical arms which latched onto the dazed assassin's arms and legs. These tried to pull him to the walls, discovered that he wouldn't bend that way, dropped him and tried again.

While Rei was discovering why all conflicts were forgotten when faced with a Washu device, a communication screen appeared in front of Tenchi and the girls.

"Guys, I forgot to warn you," Kiyone said. "I think it activates whenever it detects a stranger on board." She noted that Ayeka and Ryoko were staring around the sides of the screen, and Tenchi was peeking over it. All three cringed in time to the various groans and screams coming from off the screen.

"Thanks for the warning, Kiyone," Tenchi answered politely. Ryoko and Ayeka were in their sister modes, when they both forgot that they were supposed to hate each other. They were running a commentary on the proceedings off screen.

"I didn't think that was possible." "Ooo that one hurt." "Do you think he's still alive." "Do you particularly care?" "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Uh yeah, okay," Kiyone decided not to turn the screen about and watch what was happening in the brig. Instead she merely switched it off as the noise finished and there was one final "that……hurt," emanating from off screen.

"Kiyone." The detective turned to face Rikyu. "Do you have any experience with diplomacy?" She looked at the screen he was pointing at and saw a rather small, primitive, unarmed spacecraft. The computer was picking up radio signals from it, but they were in English.

"Well it was happening sooner or later," she thanked her luck that Washu had installed this new communication system though. These hologram screens didn't need the destination to possess similar equipment. The universal translator didn't hurt either.

The hologram showed a very surprised looking American floating in a cramped space with lots of clutter.

"This is the Yagami," Kiyone announced. "If you don't mind, this method comes with a translator and I don't speak English."

"Uh, you're human…" the man said. Kiyone blinked.

"Well, yeah, so is almost forty percent of the galaxy," Kiyone thought it was a bizarre statement.

"Okay, This is the US shuttle Discovery," the man said. He was doing an admirable job of acting like this was a normal contact. "Might I ask what your business here is."

"I'm 1st class detective Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police," Kiyone said. "I and my partner are the officers assigned to this system."

"Would that be the other ship we noticed?"

"No, that was just a friend," Kiyone answered. "Excuse me if I have to cut this short, but we have a dangerous prisoner on hand."

"Did I hear you just call that devil-woman a friend," came another voice off the screen. Apparently the other three were satisfied with Rei's cell and coming back up front.

"Is that your partner?" The man asked while Kiyone tried to ignore the chattering going on around her.

"Kiyone? Is that you?" Kiyone looked back to the screen and realized where she knew the woman. She was a regular at the Karaoke bar Mihoshi and her went to all the time until a few months ago.

"Oh hey, Michelle…uh, what's up? I, uh guess you got your transfer."

"You know her?" The statement was in stereo from Rikyu and the other astronaut.

"She was regular at a Karaoke bar when I was in Japan. _This _is the dead end assignment you were talking about?"

"Er, I guess it is a matter of perspective isn't it."

"You could say that."

"Just how many aliens are on Earth anyway?" the man asked.

"Two Akuneko, four of the Jurai royal family, me, Mihoshi and Washu. Can we continue this later? I have a prisoner to secure, a report to make, and about thirty minutes to pick up Mihoshi and get to our other job."

"Already taken care of," Kiyone looked off the screen while the two American astronauts watched nervously. "The manager understands that you're doing some business for me."

"Thank you, Rikyu-San," Kiyone breathed a sigh of relief, that was one worry off her back for a moment.

"I do own the place," Rikyu noted. "And I thought that saving me from an extragalatic assassin was worthy of some leniency."

"Oh I see, you routed into a cell phone signal," Kiyone turned back to the communication screen, embarrassed. "Uh, Yagami out." The screen blinked off.

"How do we report this?" the male astronaut asked Michelle.

"I'm not sure, Major," she admitted. "How about stray television signals."

"Sounds good."

Back on the Yagami

Ryo-Ohki vanished and soon reappeared in ship form outside. Kiyone assumed that meant that Ryoko was heading back to the Masaki house, avoiding the situation a little longer. It would be getting close to dawn back in Tokyo.

"Ryoko's heading home," Tenchi's voice called as he came to the bridge. He turned and saw Ayeka half-asleep in one of the spare seats on the bridge. "Oh and Kiyone is there anything else you or Washu have added we should know about?"

"I'll give you a list later," Kiyone said as she started for the Masaki residence.

"Anything as bad as the brig?" He yawned, it was looking to be a comatose day tomorrow.

Masaki residence

"Damn, this has not been a good day," Ryoko said as she teleported in front of the hallway phone. She watched to make sure nobody saw her and then picked up the receiver and dialed a number. 

"Hello yes, this is Ryoko. I'm just calling to say that I can't come in today. Yeah I'm feeling a little sick." She sort of mock coughed, not noticing Nobuyuki, Washu, and Mihoshi peeking at her from around the corner at the other end of the corridor. Mihoshi had been asleep, but this moment wouldn't have been embarrassing enough without her, so the fates had arranged to wake her up.

"I wasn't on anyway? Well okay then, thank you." She hung up the phone, grumbled and started into the living room where she usually slept. That's when she saw the other three people staring at her.

"I take it that the Akuneko has been captured," Washu said snidely.

"Oh, Ryoko, do you have a job too," Mihoshi chimed in.

"No, what gave you that idea?"

"Faking illness, calling in, heavy caffeine intake, getting up early in the morning," Nobuyuki ticked off a finger with each item. "All symptoms of employment."

"Oh, just leave me alone," Ryoko shouted. "Tenchi and Ayeka will be back soon enough to tell you what happened, I'm tired." She teleported again, and no one saw where she reappeared.

"I believe that Ryoko needs some time to herself," Yosho called from in the living room. "There's something else here that we don't know about. Also I don't think she's slept in the last two days." 

It wasn't much longer after that that Ayeka and Tenchi walked in the door and collapsed on the couches. Sasami was already curled up on the third, near a meditating Yosho.

"Thank goodness it's Friday," Tenchi muttered. Rikyu appeared in the center of the room via teleport, eliciting a startled reaction from Nobuyuki.

"Uh Rikyu-San," Mihoshi said. "How'd you do that?"

"I hope you don't mind me staying for a while," Rikyu said to Tenchi. "I hope to speak to my…to your other friend."

"No problem," Tenchi responded.

"Ah, Rikyu Shirai," Yosho said from where he was meditating. The red haired man stared at him and then blinked in surprise.

"Lord Katsuhito?" he asked. "He said you were his grandfather, but at first I thought it would be more like great grandfather."

"Oh I have a couple of good centuries yet," Yosho noted.

"You know each other?" Nobuyuki asked.

"We had a little run in with some bandits on the run from the GP about a hundred years ago," Rikyu noted.

"You knew about the Galaxy Police?" Mihoshi asked, disbelievingly.

A communication screen appeared in the living room filled with Kiyone's face. It popped from place to place until it found Mihoshi and Washu.

"Oh Kiyone, I was so worried about you," Mihoshi began lecturing. "Especially when that nasty man attacked us here."

"Mihoshi, we need to contact HQ," Kiyone ordered. "Washu, we've got the Akuneko in the brig if you can help me in the interrogation." Washu smirked and snickered.

"We're coming aboard now, Kiyone," Washu summoned a holographic consul, typed a few keys and suddenly she and Mihoshi vanished.

"That's going to be an interesting conversation," Tenchi muttered. He stood up and began to shuffle to the stairs. He paused a moment and turned to pick up Sasami and bring the little princess to her and Ayeka's room.

"Yes, it is," Ayeka agreed, wearily. "I wonder if he even remembers his name." She to began shuffling to her room as Tenchi left it.

"You know what, they're right," Nobuyuki yawned. "It's late. Good night everybody."

"It seems everybody is turning in," Yosho stated. "I think the couch there is free, perhaps you can talk to Ryoko in the morning, or more likely the afternoon." Yosho stood up and prepared to walk up to the shrine.

"What sort of person is Ryoko, sir?" Rikyu asked. Yosho stopped and considered his answer.

"Very proud and very lonely." He saluted the young Akuneko as he walked into the dying night to head for the shrine and his own bed.

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	6. No Need for a Family

No Need for a Family

The Cave

No one had been down here since they, or Ryoko rather, had released Washu from the stasis crystal. Now there was a simple cot laid out atop the intricately grooved stones. The entire cavern was bathed with a soft bluish white light, it was something similar to Jurai energy but peculiar to Earth. Outside it was already late in the day, but Ryoko appeared to be still sleeping soundly.

Flashback

The world encompasses a small alleyway all the color muted to gray, a defiant Ryoko lay on the ground clutching a bleeding slash in her side. Over her stood a smiling woman, in battle armor that would soon be of no use to her. She was laughing and twirling the energy sword in her hand like an Earth fizzle stick. The woman was saying something, but no words seemed to escape. The same was true for Ryoko's vulgar response. It was as if some silent wind had carried away all the sound from the scene.

The woman stopped smiling as her body shuddered and the energy sword vanished in her hand. She fell over, a burned out hole in the back of her head. Ryoko looked up to see another of the assassins that resembled her. She blacked out as the man reached down to help her up.

A little more than an hour later

Ryoko hoped that Ryo-Ohki could make it to safety on her own, and then laughed at herself for the thought. They were after her, not Ryo-Ohki, and they knew she was with Renshi. No Kuroi assassins this time, just a pair of lucky bounty hunters, almost literally smelling Ryoko's blood. She glanced at the man operating the small fighter ship, not quite trusting him yet. She laid back down on the stretcher, still weak from the most recent assassin's attack. That woman had used powers just like her own, the energy blade was a trick she'd have to work out though. Whatever the case she had no capability to resist right now.

He claimed to be a retainer of her clan, a rebel now, but he still had not explained what any of this was about. She didn't know it yet, but he never would.

Five months pass

It had been a night of released tension and unused adrenaline, just before Renshi had left her on this little dust ball to report her dead. She had had hundreds of such trysts over her eighteen hundred years. This one seemed to have born fruit.

She thought it was funny, those bastards' first appearance had forced her into piracy. She had always been a delinquent, but never anything violent before that first assassin when she was still not much more than a kid. Now she was looking to live a reasonably normal life because of the last of them, things had come full circle.

Five years later

This Japan was exceptionally primitive. A place where someone with Ryoko's talents and experience could make a fair living, woman or no. In addition she had sold most of the equipment she had left from her parents' spacecraft. They served no purpose to her and these hayseeds thought they were some sort of wonderous piece of art. She could live a long time on this world. Maybe Renshi would even return, and they might possibly make something out of that one night of pent up emotions.

Ryoko glanced over at her son with the priests while she practiced summoning her energy blade. Things were almost perfect. She had been planning on visiting a mystic warrior she had heard about in another part of the country. A samurai with strange powers, she suspected it was someone like her. A resident of the galaxy living in self-imposed exile.

That was when Ryoko heard the voice in her mind. Ryo-Ohki's voice approaching through the void warning her about a bounty hunter ship. It wasn't Nagi, not yet, she would come later, but this would ruin her normal life. It took her all of five seconds to decide that it would only ruin hers.

She left the temple and never came back.

The Cave

Ryoko sat up slowly as the dream came to an end, she rose a hand to her cheek and it came back wet. For the second time in the last few days she was crying. The space pirate took a long breath, trying to soak in the power of Earth that seemed to flow through the cave. Now would have to be the time, she was as prepared now as she ever would be. With the Kuroi and their retainers back in her life, later might be too late. Things needed to be cleared up. She floated off the sacred ground and teleported out.

Masaki Residence

Rikyu seemed to be the only one who was yet awake. He paced about the silent living room trying to come to grips with what he should think. Obviously his mother hadn't been killed by bandits as he had been thought had happened over two centuries ago. That left the question of why she had left. The monks Ryoko had left him with had described her as uncouth and a little barbaric, but they also said that she had always treated him like any other mother would treat her son. They had told him that one day she just suddenly became very sad and left to never return.

He was still pacing when Ryoko appeared in the middle of the room.

"Nobody else is awake I guess," she noted.

"Yeah, we have a little space alone it seems," Rikyu agreed. Ryoko nodded and breathed a large slow breeze of air.

"I didn't want to leave," Ryoko said first. "I had found something of a normal life."

"Then why did you?"

"I was a space pirate," Ryoko said. "Most would say I still am. The bounty hunters found me. If Ryo-Ohki hadn't reached me first, then they would have found you as well."

"So you left to draw them off," Rikyu said. "To protect me?"

"To protect us both," Ryoko admitted. "I had, and still have, many enemies, and not all bounty hunters are the most noble of people."

"Then why did you come back?" Rikyu asked holding her stare with his own.

"I never intended to. I've been terrified about this for the last two centuries. I crash landed here about two years ago, Galaxy Police this time. Then I met…someone…everyone…and I had a family again."

"You were going to live here and never come look for me?"

"Do you think I felt happy about it? Everyday I've been here I've asked myself why would you want to see me," Ryoko asked. "Why would you even believe me?"

"The teleporting and energy tricks would have been a clue."

"Yeah, you've learned everything much quicker than I did. The monks told you what I could do didn't they. Thinking of things always seems to be the biggest problem for me."

"Yes and I accidentally flew one day, after that every came quickly. You left me these bracers right?" He revealed the items around his wrists.

"Yeah, I did. I would have left behind more, but I had sold most of them already."

"I know, I think I've found most of them." Ryoko glanced at him, confused. "The monks told me about that, I've spent most of my life hunting down relics."

"Be interesting to see them again," Ryoko laughed. "I took them out of my orphanage's storage, came from your grandparents' ship. The Akuneko…the Kuroi I guess, nearly destroyed it, I was the only survivor."

"What were they like?" Ryoko shrugged.

"I was two."

"My father?"

"His name was Renshi, he claimed to be a retainer of our clan playing one of the Kuroi thugs. Whoever he was, he saved my life."

"A one night stand," considering her lifestyle he wasn't surprised.

"I didn't get a chance to know him any better, he left to report me dead. And that was last I heard of him, until that bastard showed up."

"He's dead then." Ryoko nodded solemnly.

"The only good thing that's come out of them hunting me is you. At least I was right about that, I don't want to know what you'd be now if I'd taken you with me." Ryoko sat down on the couch. "Probably a worthless vagabond, just like me. Ayeka's right I can blow things up and that's about it. Well, that'll be useful pretty soon at least."

"You don't think this is the last of the Kuroi," Rikyu nodded an agreement with her.

"They're coming, and it's not just me anymore. There'll be no running."

"And where do _we_ go from here?"

"I don't know," Ryoko admitted. Mother and son sat across from each other in an uncomfortable silence. From the shadows of Ayeka and Sasami's room an unnoticed figure sat quietly watching through a slightly open door.

"Rei Kuroi isn't the only one who's misjudged you," Ayeka whispered.

The Yagami, extreme Earth orbit, the Washu-Brig

"Detective," Rei spat weakly in greeting. The assassin looked a mess, his battle armor was in shreds, and his flesh was burned and in some places swollen. His arm was still limp and now it seemed that he had a shattered leg as well. Kiyone glanced at Washu, who was smirking viciously, sometimes the detective wondered where the scientist drew the line. Not that she enjoyed hurting people, it was just that Washu never stopped to wonder if something should be done.

"I see it works," Washu said proudly. Rei glared at her with fear and only a little less hate than he held for Kiyone.

"This was not my intention, Kuroi-San," Kiyone said. "But I'd be lying if I said I was sorry."

"Of course not," Rei laughed. "A barbarian like you would never feel shame at hiding behind machines."

"Do you know what the difference between a barbarian and a civilized person is?" Kiyone asked.

"The barbarian is inferior of course," Rei answered. "An ignorant savage with no honor."

"No," Kiyone said. "The difference is that the civilized man is at home, and the barbarian is not. That would make _you _the barbarian here." Rei snarled and lurched across the brig. He stopped short of the doorway though.

"_This _will be _our_ home before too long, woman," the assassin hissed. Behind him his tail weaved angrily. That was unusual, when Ryoko was in her armor the tail didn't appear. He smiled at her haughtily "You are harboring fugitives from my government, that is call for war." The effect was ruined by the fact that his one leg couldn't hold him long and he fell to the ground.

"Neither of those 'fugitives' even knew about your government until you came along." Kiyone responded, unfazed by the threats. She knew, from dealing with Ryoko, that the Akuneko would heal fast, but he was hurting now.

"It doesn't matter, what they know," he snapped. "They are Shinku, as long as they live we're the rebels!" He pulled himself up onto his cot again. Kiyone looked to Washu for an explanation.

"The Kuroi claimed that they were fighting the Shinku tyranny when the Akuneko first invaded the border systems." Washu had understood that this was her role in the interrogation the entire time, historian and a little bit of intimidation. She didn't mind, she even relished the chance to study Kiyone's methods.

"So the war you mentioned is only to kill Ryoko and Rikyu?" Kiyone asked, raising one eyebrow.

"That'll be the excuse," Rei admitted. "It adds to my belief that this was a pointless assignment." Rei lay on his cot and tried to ignore Kiyone, she wasn't going to give him that chance.

"And what excuse would they have had if you had succeeded?" she asked, with a hard look in her eyes that even made Washu nervous.

"What do you mean?" Rei had a sense of something he wasn't going to like coming.

"You came across as a tourist correct?"

"Another idiotic command decision," he agreed.

"What would your government do if one of their people were killed over here while sight seeing." Rei glared at her as he realized that he was never intended to survive this mission, successful or not.

"Very clever, detective," he hissed. "I hadn't thought of that. Now perhaps you can leave? I need to get some sleep, after all there's a war coming to your home." It was a hint of revenge against his superiors, only a slice of what he would bring later. Kiyone smiled triumphantly, and it twisted the Akuneko's gut to see the woman win over him once more.

"Thank you, Kuroi-San," Kiyone's gaze eased. "I've got what I need Washu."

"If you'll let me, I wish to examine his wreck," Washu asked.

"Fine by me, excuse me, I have to check on Mihoshi," Kiyone walked up the corridor and around the corner. Washu turned to face Rei with a neutral expression on her face.

"Don't think I've missed your intentions," Washu told him.

"What do you care about whether I wish to kill that barbarian or not," Rei grumbled.

"That barbarian has one of the keenest minds I've ever met," Washu hummed pleasantly. "Her genius might not be in the same direction as mine, but she is the closest thing I've ever had to daughter." Washu leaned close to the invisible wall and smiled at a frowning Rei. "And do you really want _me_ personally against you?"

"We'll see if it is still a problem when the Kuroi have you in your own cell." Washu laughed and walked on to the cargo bay.

Yagami bridge

"Kiyone!! Kiyone!" Mihoshi was yelling with eyes closed. "KIIYOOONEEE!!!"

"What is it?" Kiyone asked trying to rub out her ears.

"I can't find the report forms!" 

"That's because I hid them," Kiyone thought to herself, calling up which directory they were in.

"How can I fill out the report if I don't have the forms?"

"I'll handle it, Mihoshi," Kiyone sat down and called up a communication screen to the new Galaxy Police headquarters. "1st class detective Kiyone Makibi reporting in, sir."

"Oh, Makibi," the sergeant answered. "I was just going to contact you. Has the Akuneko arrived there yet?"

"He is in my custody," Kiyone admitted. "It turns out that Ryoko and one other are the last remnants of the Shinku Akuneko clan."

"Oh, did you notice that Ryoko looks like the same kind of species as Rei?" Mihoshi asked, Kiyone rolled her eyes.

"That explains their interest in her," her superior noted. "Who is this 'other' you're talking about?" Kiyone weighed the issue and decided that the truth here would be better for all.

"Ryoko's son, Rikyu," Kiyone told him. "He is mentioned in the demon war." The sergeant looked at her strangely. "I mean case 348502. There's something else sir."

"Rikyu-san is Ryoko's son?" Mihoshi asked and then tried to figure it out.

"What is it?"

"I believe the Akuneko intend to invade," Kiyone told him. "Our captive has indicated that Ryoko and Rikyu's presence here will be construed as us housing fugitives from their justice. I also think that if he had succeeded then Rei Kuroi would have been killed and that would have been the excuse for the invasion."

"Invade? That means there'll be a lot of them?" Mihoshi began to process this disturbing information.

"Is there any clue as to where they will strike first?"

"I think they'll head for Earth first, he said that war was coming to my home."

"Earth! Who's attacking Earth?"

"It makes sense," the sergeant agreed. "If they have spies of any quality they'll know about who lives there. They'd want to be rid of heros such as you first. Speaking of which you have company coming, they should be there any moment."

"Hey, Kiyone," Mihoshi pointed out the window. "Isn't that a Jurai battleship?"

"Who sir?" Another communication screen opened up. On the other side of it was a bandaged Nagi and battered Ken-Ohki, who was still cheerful as only a cabbit could be under such a situation. They were flanked by the knights Azaka and Kamidake.

"Kiyone," Nagi said. "We're coming aboard."

Note: In the TV series (or at least the movie) Kiyone seems to be the one that tries out most of Washu's stuff. At any rate Washu picks on Kiyone in the same way she picks on Ryoko in the OAV series. Also since Kiyone's Yagami seems to be a custom job, I think she shares some of Washu's love of tinkering, even if she doesn't have the skill or lack of restraint.

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	7. No Need for Preparations

No Need for Preparations

The Yagami bridge, extreme Earth orbit

"Miss Kiyone," Azaka addressed the mistress of the Yagami. "You need to sleep." The knight's youthful-looking partner nodded his agreement. Mihoshi was already snoring in her co-pilot's chair. 

"Not yet, there's too much to do," Kiyone said, yawning. She opened a communication screen. "Washu, any preliminaries on the ship?"

"It's too early to be asking that," the scientist said irritably. "Give me some time, and get some sleep. You're almost falling over." Washu was one to talk, she regularly worked through the night, often waking up in one of her floating chairs leaning against the solid holographic consoles she could summon at will.

"I do not need sleep," Kiyone griped, switching off the communication.

"Miss Kiyone," Kamidake started, ignoring Kiyone's forbidding glare. "You've reported what you discovered, we're here to watch the prisoner, Washu won't have a report ready for a while yet. The Jurai frontier reports no ships yet. There is nothing you can do right now but get some rest."

"No, there is one more thing I need to do," Kiyone corrected. "I need to find some way around that force field of they have. I can't always count on them teleporting where I can hit them." Usually she'd leave this kind of thing to Washu, but Washu had more important things to do right now. Then Kiyone had an idea, she started back into vast corridors of the Yagami, but was stopped by Nagi's outstretched energy whip.

"Not you too," Kiyone growled.

"Get some sleep now, or you'll be useless when we need you," the bounty hunter ordered without any of the respect of the two knights. Kiyone and Nagi glared at each other. Nagi was still healing from her and Ken-Ohki's wreck. Kiyone on the other hand hadn't slept in almost two days by now, staying awake while the rest of the Tenchi crew slept. The two of them were both trained and accomplished martial artists, unlike Ryoko who was still in many ways a raw and brute force oriented combatant.

"I'm not the only one," Kiyone noted looking to the sling Nagi's arm was in. The way the bounty hunter was holding herself, Kiyone suspected she had a cracked rib as well.

"Point taken, okay, I'll take it easy if you do," the bounty hunter laughed. "It is almost lunch time in Japan isn't it. That little princess should be cooking something."

"I'd like some of Sasami's cooking too, but for now we stay on the ship."

"There is no need for that miss Kiyone," Azaka responded. "We can watch that brigand for you." Kiyone didn't doubt that, but it was her ship, and she didn't trust Nagi around Ryoko.

"Fine, I'll take one of the guest cabins then," Nagi said. "I really miss the time when you had the house in the cargo bay. The Masakis have a good place to rest."

"If anything happens you wake me up," Kiyone ordered. Her voice still held the hint of command as she wearily moved to her own quarters.

"What do we do about her?" Kamidake pointed to the open-mouthed and loudly snoring blonde.

"Hope she keeps sleeping," Azaka gave the obvious answer.

The Yagami brig

Rei flexed his left arm, glad that he could move it again. The leg was another matter, all told he'd be laid up for a long time, he'd probably miss the war. It was all Makibi's fault, she was the only one that had touched him. And it had been a weakling's weapon that had injured him, he'd been shot by a laser like some powerless peasant. 

Her tried to call forth an energy blade, but found himself still too drained. The assassin snarled and tried again, focusing on the image of the weakling peasant that was holding him, a small dagger sized blade appeared in his hand. Soon he'd be able to summon a full blade with that arm again.

The assassin thought bitterly about his "dear brother" whose command this mission had been. Ryoi planned to be Thane, there was no secret there. Until now, Rei never thought that he would betray his family for the title. His brother had made a mistake though, he hadn't arranged for a surety of his death. Rei was not a forgiving individual, and now he realized just how undeserving of the title Thane Ryoi was. If anybody should be the Thane of Kuroi it was him, not that scheming official back home. After that he would take the title of High Thane when the Shinku were finally destroyed and the Kuroi remained to rule the Akuneko.

Rei laid back and slept, letting his body repair itself.

"You will need more power," a voice in the darkness of sleep told him.

The Cave

"Isn't there supposed to be a goblin sealed here?" Rikyu asked as she and Ryoko stood in the Masaki cave. "That was why they put a shrine here, wasn't it?"

"You've met Washu?" Ryoko asked.

"Yeah, what about…oh, I get it," Rikyu paused uncomfortably. "What are we doing here?"

"Training," Ryoko answered. "How much can you do, really?"

"You've seen most of my tricks," Rikyu answered. "Other than those tricks not much, I can raise a wall if I'm not doing anything else."

"A wall?" Ryoko asked. "Like this?" Rikyu quickly noted the translucent, almost invisible shell that surrounded his mother. He'd seen the assassin do something similar to block Ayeka and Kiyone's attacks.

"Well, no," he admitted. "I've never done that. I meant a wall." Ryoko let her force field dropped as a wall of the same force rose up between her and Rikyu. The creation effectively cut the cave into two chambers.

"I've never tried that," she said. Then again, until recently Ryoko had only ever needed to protect herself.

"I've been in a couple of wars," he said. "It proved useful to keep the bullets off my side, just advance until the position favors us, drop the wall and fire."

"That means you can move it forward," Ryoko noted. Rikyu shrugged, he let the wall dropped.

"Yeah, it took a while to get that part to work though, why?"

"Try to raise a force field," Ryoko suggested. Rikyu thought about shell shaped wall, and soon raised an oval-shaped personal force field. It took him a little longer than Ryoko had, but it was there. Ryoko nodded. She walked over to stand next to him. "A little slow but it works, show me the wall again."

Rikyu obliged and noted his mother watching every step of the process. He released his breath as he completed the wall again.

"Okay, move it away from us." Ryoko watched as her son advanced the force wall forward. "That's good, I think I got it, but your missing something."

"What do you mean?" Ryoko smiled. She might not be the most skilled warrior of the crew, she usually made up for that with her raw natural speed and power, but she had been a pirate for somewhere around seventeen hundred years of her twenty-hundred year life. She had discovered most of her tricks without any help, perfecting the teleport and force field. She was far more innovative than she seemed.

"Most of your effort is going into controlling the wall," Ryoko took a moment to raise her own wall. It took quite a bit longer than her son had accomplished, she realized that he was right, she wouldn't be able to do anything else while doing this. Upon successfully raising the wall, Ryoko started its motion, and let it go.

The almost invisible wave of force slammed into the cavern wall and raised a cloud of dust. Rikyu picked himself up from the ground and stared at where the wave had struck the wall. As the dust fell he saw that it was still undamaged, aside from clutter knocked from the ceiling.

"Why are you smiling, it didn't seem to do much but produce a shockwave," Rikyu asked.

"You should have seen it when we released Washu," Ryoko told him, smiling at the memory. "That was a mess, this isn't your everyday cave."

"So what next," Rikyu asked.

"Next we work on your teleporting," Ryoko noted. She suspected that he couldn't combat port, she and Rei had several times in the battle two days ago, but Rikyu never had.

Yosho's Training Grounds

"Lord Yosho, why am I here?" Ayeka asked from where she stood by Tenchi. "I'm a princess not a warrior."

"Your habits would claim otherwise," Yosho quipped. Tenchi was curious about the lack of bokkens in the area. "But in this subject you are actually ahead of Tenchi, so I could use some help."

"But Lord Tenchi is Jurai warrior-prince," Ayeka said.

"Who lacks training in channeling the Jurai power," Yosho told her.

"Your going to train us in using the Jurai power?" Tenchi repeated. He wasn't certain of this, he hadn't tried to do that without the sword-Tenchi.

"Yes," Yosho answered. "There are many thing you can do without the sword, Tenchi, and you'll need to know a few of them if more of those warriors are truly coming."

"Kiyone isn't usually wrong about these things," Tenchi noted.

"We'll start with the basics first," Yosho noted. "Ayeka can you demonstrate just a light for the moment."

"Yes, Lord Yosho," Ayeka nodded sharply, and then produced a small blue globe which bathed the area around them in a soft light which mixed with the light of the filtered daylight in an eerie and peaceful manner.

"Tenchi," the young prince nodded and tried to copy what he had felt. He'd used the sword enough to know something about channeling the Jurai power, but this would be the first time he'd tried it. It took a little time, but soon a bluish-white globe added its light to the clearing. "Good, now form it into a shield. Ayeka, if you would first." Ayeka's shield curved in a triangular arc in front of her body.

Tenchi then worked on forming his own shield. He had been training in combat all his life, this and his recent experiences, the battles with Kagato and Caine, had prepared him for the mystical part of the Jurai martial arts. His shield was a blue-white triangle, hanging in front of him like a sheet of glass.

"You can release it now," Yosho said.

"What now?" Tenchi asked. Yosho smiled.

"Now it starts getting difficult," he answered. Tenchi winced.

Kiyone's quarters on the Yagami

Kiyone was dressed for bed, and she was sitting cross-legged on the matress, but she wasn't sleeping. On the desk to her side she had a tool box with a variety of items ranging from archaic pliers and screwdrivers to high tech circuit burners and energy routers. Next to the tool box were her personal weapons, the yo-yo and the GP laser. She wasn't going to touch those, but the Yagami had a small arsenal for her to tinker with. Five of the GP lasers were on the bed in front of her in various states of dismantlement. She also had a small supply of engine parts, and, the key to her idea, a small cylinder that glowed in an alternating color scheme of blue, white and purple.

Every couple of moments Kiyone started to slump over, but every time she shook herself completely awake. She was having trouble keeping her eyes open, but she was already past the delicate work. There was nothing extremely damaging she could do from this point. As far as she was concerned at this point she wasn't tired, because there was no time to be tired.

The Jurai energy generator only supplied energy for a few minutes before it burned out. That was no problem, she wasn't planning on a sustained charge. All she needed was a short release of power added to the light defractors she was aligning from the lasers. She had no idea if this would work, but it was worth a try.

It had taken her thirty minutes to assemble the rifle, right now it was an ugly collection of the various parts she had scavenged. She'd plate it later, after testing it.

"Right now all I need…is to test the," Kiyone paused for a yawn. "…relays, and then find a…" She yawned again. "…a safe place to test it…" Despite herself she laid back on her pillow. "…talk to Ryyaaahh…whoah.Ryoko….or maybe Rikyu…" That was the last sound she made for a while, aside from a deep steady breathing.

Guest quarters on the Yagami

Nagi was not tired, but Kiyone was right, she needed to recuperate before any real battle occurred. Ken-Ohki was already mostly recovered after only two days, the cabbit had a stubborn cut on one of his legs and that was about it. The bounty hunter was reclining in the simple chair, which, aside from the bed, was the only real furniture in the room. A platform extended from the wall to form something of a table which Nagi was resting her feet on.

Nagi also knew why Kiyone didn't want her near the Masaki house. The detective suspected that Nagi would try for Ryoko, injuries or not. As much as Nagi hated it, she couldn't have done that. Ryoko no longer had a bounty on her head. That meant that killing her would legally be murder. No, Nagi had to wait for the woman to break the law again. Also it wouldn't have been a very good idea to kill Ryoko if the Akuneko were really coming.

The Yagami cargo bay

"How very interesting," Washu noted, after tearing apart the circuitry of the door. "This circuitry is almost as efficient a organic neural net." She stepped into the cockpit and examined the console.

"Hmm, there are no manual controls," she picked up a circular object attached by wires to the computer. She opened the circle and closed it again, then on impulse closed it around her neck. She was suddenly aware of every available device and function in the ship. "Amazing, I knew Ryoko had telepathic capabilities, but I had no idea. I doubt they have much capability, but it would explain the technology. I'll have to remember to test Ryoko's potential." Washu smiled as she thought that.

The Cave

"Anything wrong," Rikyu asked. Ryoko had been attempting for the third time to translate combat-porting into speech when she paused. A confused look came over her face.

"Felt threatened for a moment," she answered. "Still must be sleepy. Anyway, I want you to try again…"

The Yagami cargo bay

"Now, this direct telepathic link with the ship presents some possibilities," Washu noted. "We should find a way to send feedback down the lines. There'll be…" Washu stopped talking and her eyes went wide. She dropped the scanner in her hand.

At the paired training grounds Ryoko and the Jurai experienced similar reactions and looked in the direction of the Yagami, though they could not see it. At the Masaki residence Sasami slipped in cutting the vegetables and cut herself, she didn't notice.

In the Yagami the two knights rose and looked at each other in disbelief.

Even Kiyone and Mihoshi snapped awake and felt what they all did. All those who had faced him when he finally fell felt it, telepath or no, Jurai power or no. They all breathed the same word.

"Kagato…"

Moments later Kiyone, Mihoshi, the knights and Washu were at the brig.

Rei's mindscape

Everything was black, the only points of color being Rei and the tall dark haired Jurai standing across from him. Rei was limping towards the man, driven by greed and wonder.

"I can teach you the power you need," the warrior told him. "But I can't return now, you have to come to me."

"Where are you?" Rei asked feverishly.

"The darkness at the center of the universe," the warrior spoke reverently. "You can learn much from here, enough to make you the most powerful man in the universe. You can be immortal, unstoppable, and I will teach you my mistakes, and you can topple the Jurai, and claim rulership over your own people."

"What's the catch?"

"You only get one chance to return," the warrior explained. "Fail and you return here, forever."

"I will not fail."

The Yagami brig

The Akuneko had walked under the doorway and was now being bombarded with painful energy. For him, in the condition he was already in, the exposure would prove lethal. It should have been any way. The on-lookers were aghast as every wound the door opened began wafting a crackling black energy.

"I'll be back Kiyone Makibi, 1st class Galaxy Police detective" the assassin yelled. "I'll be back with more power than you can imagine!!!" The assassin was laughing as he seemed to explode into black, creeping energy. In moments not even the energy remained, returned to its source at the center of the universe.

"It can't be possible," Kiyone said. "Tenchi killed Kagato, and Rei is Akuneko. He can't possibly channel Jurai energy."

"I fear the power Kagato wielded," Washu started. "Was not Jurai by the time we encountered him. Certainly he could channel Jurai energy, but I think he used something else."

"Yes," the Azaka agreed. "And now he still strikes at us from his eternal prison. This assassin will indeed return more powerful."

"Great more good news," Kiyone breathed.

"Oh Kiiyoooneee," Mihoshi wailed. "It's not true is it? Tell me it's not true!"

"Quiet Mihoshi," Washu commanded. "We won't deal with this by breaking down. He won't be back very soon. He'll come back when the war is over and we're exhausted and weakened. We can deal with the Akuneko first, then him."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	8. No Need for Command

No Need for Command

The Jurai Frontier, a Jurai battleship

"Sir, what are we doing out here?" the first officer asked his admiral. "Are we actually going to fight a war over a space pirate?"

"If weren't for that space pirate we would all be under Kagato's thumb right now," the admiral answered.

"I thought that it was Lord Tenchi that defeated him," the man sounded confused.

"And how do you think he made it past our defenses to the palace?" the admiral asked. "Ryoko is a hero of the Jurai, and will be treated as such. It is a moot point anyway, wars are fought over resources not causes. They would be coming anyway."

"Sir! We have readings beyond the frontier!" Someone called from one of the consoles.

"Give me a visual," the first officer ordered. As was usual for the Jurai, the admiral watched the proceedings silently. A holographic screen hung in front of him, relating all the pertinent data.

A large holograph appeared in front of the bowl shaped bridge revealing a starfield with a collection of green dots indicating ship readings. There were nearly forty ships out there.

"Lieutenant," the admiral said calmly. "Report this to Jurai, the Akuneko have appeared."

"Yes, sir."

"Give me an ETA."

"Maybe a day, maybe a week, it's hard to tell through dead space." The admiral nodded, sensors could detect things at a vastly exaggerated distance through dead space. There was nothing out there to interfere with the signals. Unfortunately this meant that they had no idea of their sensor capabilities in dead space. "We have thirty battleships on the way."

"Thirty? How much are we leaving for the sol system?"

"There are two battleships within easy reach," the answer came. "Five more can get there within the week."

"Hmm, any word on the GP?"

"They're coming sir, but with the Caine incident they're having problems organizing a force. I have just received word that twelve full special units have been alerted to our situation and will be here within eight hours."

"Good they're here, perhaps they're coming for Jurai after all," the first officer noted, once all their forces had been collected.

"Reports coming in from other ships in the picket," someone shouted. "Another hundred signals detected heading for the Sol system!"

"You were saying? Alert Jurai and the Yagami, the information is accurate. The Akuneko are targeting Earth."

"Sir, the battleship Tamashii is in the Sol system."

"The Sol system is GP jurisdiction, that puts Makibi in command."

"A mere 1st class detective? But doesn't the presence of Lord Tenchi and the..."

"Kiyone Makibi not only bears the official right of command, but she is also the best in the region qualified for that command. Given her actions in the Kagato mess she could strategize rings around _me_, much less Koretsu. That will be all."

"Yes, sir."

Dead Space, Akuneko carrier, Earth vector

"Lord Ryoi," the peasant went to his knees before the Kuroi warrior. "We've detected artificial signals. We suspect that they are some sort of sensor trace."

"How long before we'll be able to pierce the galaxy's signature?"

"A day, two at most, and we'll be able to read past the frontier."

"Go then and report when you have more."

"Milord," the peasant backed away to his station.

"It would seem that your brother has betrayed us," a battle-suited woman suggested. "We will find the Jurai across the border."

"There is nothing we can do about him now," Lord Ryoi answered. "He is already dead."

"What a pity."

Earth, the woods outside the shrine

"What are we doing out here, Kiyone?" Mihoshi asked. 

"We're making sure no one else will get hurt," Kiyone answered while sighting down the three-foot gadget she had invented. The early tests had proved promising, and at least it wouldn't blow up in her hands. At least she thought it wouldn't, "Okay, back up Mihoshi." Mihoshi took a step back and watched her hero nervously.

Kiyone sighted again and pulled the trigger. Lasers produced a beam that continued on until the power was denied. This weapon produced a lance-like yellow bolt of energy laced with blue veins. The force of the shot forced Kiyone's hands up, another aspect that the laser lacked. The bolt laced outward and struck a boulder, tunnelling an even hole through the middle of it and exploding out the other side. The attack culminated in a small explosion about fifty feet out of the rock.

"Whoa," Mihoshi gaped out the display. Kiyone smiled, the kickback was a little much, and she'd have to adapt to the lower rate of fire. Still it should be useful against the Akuneko force fields.

"Let's go find Ryoko and Rikyu," the teal-haired detective suggested. Everyone had intensified their training after they had felt Kagato meddling in their lives again. They waited for Rei's return in the shadows of the war.

Mihoshi nodded happily immediately turning towards the cave shrine the Akuneko had been training in. Their beepers started flashing then. "Damn, this better be important." It took only a few minutes to arrive on the Yagami and arrive at the bridge.

"This is the Galaxy Police cruiser Yagami, 1st class detective Kiyone Makibi speaking," she was surprised to be facing a Jurai communications officer.

"Battleship Hito, on the frontier," the man reported. "Our picket has detected at least a hundred unidentified ships on your vector heading in from dead space. The main attack will take place near Earth."

"Thank you, for the report, we'll be ready," Kiyone responded. The Jurai soldier saluted her and the communication blinked out. Another communication came in on top of it, this time it was the familiar face of the sergeant of detectives, paired with that of a Jurai admiral."

"1st class detective Kiyone Makibi?" the Admiral asked.

"Yes, sir," Kiyone answered surprised.

"Boy we're getting a lot of calls today," Mihoshi noted, she yawned and pulled out her storage cube to look for some coffee.

"Makibi," the sergeant began. "The Jurai have requested that you be given command of the Sol system defense, and we have agreed. For the moment you have the rank of Captain Kiyone Makibi, is that understood." His voice indicated that it was a reluctant agreement, Mihoshi did come with Kiyone after all.

"Me?" Kiyone asked stunned. "In command? Thank you sir. I shall try not to disappoint you."

"I don't believe you will," the admiral noted. "Is there anything you would like to discuss?"

"The people of Earth, sir," Kiyone noted. "Should we alert them?"

"Why? They don't have the technology to help us," the admiral answered. "Either we stop the Akuneko or we don't, alerting Earth won't change that."

"Sir, three Jurai transports could evacuate Earth in a little less than a day," Kiyone noted. "We are on the edge of the galaxy here, sir. They'll hit us fairly quickly if the first battle is a defeat."

"We'll send two transports on stand bye, as a back up," the admiral noted. "In case it appears that we are losing, but hold off alerting Earth officials until the last moment."

"Yes sir,"

"Jurai out."

"GP out."

"Captain Makibi," Kiyone repeated to herself.

"Well, Captain," Nagi was standing behind her. It had been a week since their prisoner had "escaped" and the bounty hunter was in much better shape. "What do you want us to do?"

"Time to gather everybody up, I'm going to make some calls," Kiyone said, in control again. "Uh...where's Mihoshi?" Nagi pointed at a shapeless pile of objects ranging from stuffed animals and magazines to GP equipment.

"I just want some coffee," the heap said in a muffled voice on the edge of tears.

Later in the Makibi house living room

"Lord Tenchi should have the command here," the Jurai captain, Koretsu, was complaining. "Not this _policewoman_." Sasami and Mihoshi were playing a video game in the back room. Nobuyuki was at work, probably flirting with his secretary.

"Now is not the time to squabble over command," Kamidake lectured. The log-like guardians that shared the knights' names hovered in the background near one of the doors.

"Captain Makibi has been given the command," Azaka agreed. "And she is well deserving of it."

"We don't have the time for this," Ayeka snapped. The knights and soldier instantly ceased their chatter at her command. Ayeka turned to Kiyone, and demurely continued. "Please, Kiyone, continue."

"Okay," Kiyone began, she looked to Washu. A hologram appeared over the living room table. It showed scenes from what had to be the first Akuneko wars. "According to Koretsu and Washu, the Akuneko basically fight using swarms of small fighter type craft. These are carried to the battle by other ships about the size of the Tamashii. On their own the carriers are not much of a difficult target, but things may have changed over the last two thousand years, it is the fighters that are the problem."

"We know all this already," Koretsu snapped. "How does that solve our problem, we are still greatly outnumbered and a long way from reinforcements."

"Yeah, Kiyone," Ryoko agreed. The Jurai captain stared at her in annoyance, he didn't like the criminal siding with him. "We have the Yagami, two cabbits and," she paused and looked at the Jurai captain. "Three battleships? Close enough to get to the frontier, they have a hundred ships, probably all carriers with several of those fighters." Kiyone smiled and looked at Washu.

"This is where the fleet is coming," Washu noted as the hologram changed. The screen showed an unpopulated system and then focused on one of the planets and its three moons. "I plan to set up a little station on this moon here." The hologram indicated the habitable, but still barren sphere. "A little idea I picked up from one of the American's films." The scientist snickered a little as she thought of what she was going to put there. "We have reinforcements on the way, but they will probably arrive too late."

"I've already commanded the other battleships to cease active scanning and hold position within the main planet's signature," Kiyone informed them. "We should be gone and heading to join them in the next two hours. At top speed we'll be there within two days, we travel with out active sensors or communication, Ryoko or Rikyu can teleport across ships if information is needed."

"I am not quite as skilled a teleporter as...my mother," Rikyu informed them. Ryoko said nothing. She disliked being used as a messenger, but she wasn't about to give that Jurai more ammunition against Kiyone. "But I'll help if as is needed."

"Thank you Rikyu-san," Kiyone responded, relieved. Then she continued, her voice hard and commanding again. "The cabbits will not travel in ship form, I don't want them out until the battle starts." Ryoko and Nagi nodded, understanding the strategy. "When we get there, the Tamashii and the Yagami will join the Gyanburu and the Kagekiha in the planet signature."

"Kiyone, what are we supposed to do in this?" Tenchi asked, referring to himself and Ayeka. "It doesn't sound like you need us." 

"I'll need you two, the guardians and the knights to run security at Washu's post," Kiyone told them. "She'll get visitors eventually."

"What about the Yagami," guardian-Azaka asked. "You'll be piloting, who'll make sure you're not boarded." Kiyone and Washu looked at each other and started laughing, none of the rest of the crew wanted to know what that meant.

"Between Mihoshi, me and Rikyu," Kiyone said, recovering. "We should be able to handle it. Any battle on the Yagami is my favor anyway."

"You're going to let that blonde do something," Korestsu was appalled.

"She took down Ryo-Ohki in a _patroller_," Kiyone informed him, Ryoko mumbled something about a "hangover" but that was it. Kiyone then completed detailing her plan. "When the Akuneko fleet is about us, we'll break atmosphere and begin the attack. By all accounts of the war and Washu's conclusions from studying the fighter, each Jurai battleship should be worth at least five of their carriers, Ken-Ohki should be able to take ten no problem and Ryo-Ohki eight. Mihoshi and I should be able to take five or six. Data on Washu's weapon is..." Kiyone looked over at Washu who merely snickered. Everybody shifted uncomfortably. "....inconclusive, but we should be able to do a great amount of damage within the first moments of battle. We have to, because the fighter's mobility and numbers will be difficult to overcome."

"It sounds good on paper," Koretsu agreed, reluctantly. "But we'll see if it works, and if they find us first we'll have to deal with the fighters."

"You'll just have to make sure they don't find you," Lord Yosho noted, calmly. He was staying on Earth with Sasami and Nobuyuki as a last line of defense. Kiyone nodded a thanks to him.

"If everything is understood," Kiyone wasn't asking. "Then we should be on our way. Now."

"Excuse me," Ryoko stood up. "I just have to...." She mumbled something.

"What did you say?" Kiyone asked.

"I have to call my boss and tell him I'm quitting, okay," she yelled. "It'll just take a minute." The space pirate stomped away red-faced.

"I was wondering when she was going to admit that," Kiyone said to herself. The Jurai captain glared at her.

"She'll be right behind us," Tenchi said, standing up. "Let's go on ahead."

"Yes, Lord Tenchi," came a chorus of Jurai voices, eliciting a downtrodden look from the young prince. A series of ship powered teleports followed taking everyone to their respective ships. Ayeka remained behind, using a little Jurai power to hold off the teleport. She walked into the hallway and intercepted Ryoko who was about to teleport.

"Lady Shinku," Ryoko winced. The ever formal Ayeka had taken to calling her that as her family history came out. Considering that Ryoko connected the title to fifteen separate assassination attempts from five different people, it wasn't particularly thoughtful.

"Ayeka, we need to be gone," Ryoko told her. "Can we fight later?"

"I don't want to fight anymore," Ayeka said. Ryoko stared at her confused. A holograph communication screen appeared before them.

"Hurry up you two," Kiyone yelled. "We need to go."

"Go ahead a get me aboard, Kiyone," Ayeka answered. The irate police detective vanished just before Ayeka began to teleport. "This doesn't mean I'm giving up on Lord Tenchi!"

"Of course not!" Ryoko yelled. "That would be too easy!" Then she teleported herself.

The Akuneko carrier

"Lord Ryoi," the surveillance officer was again kneeling before the Kuroi warrior. "The artificial signals have ceased."

"Were you able to identify their source?"

"No sir, but reports indicate a region of extreme electro-magnetic activity near the planned beachhead, at this range it may have confused our sensors."

"I see, so you think that our feint has been effective?"

"I do, milord."

"It is on your head then." The soldier nodded and tried to avoid sweating.

"Yes, milord."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	9. No Need for an Ambush

No Need for an Ambush

Battleship Hito, on the bridge, at the Akuneko feint

"The enemy is retreating," the admiral was not surprised. He scanned about the bridge, surveying the slight state of disarray. It had been an easy victory, they would have needed twice the number of ships on the Sol vector to succeed. Even then it would have been a messy victory.

"Get me a status report and a list of casualties." The admiral ordered.

"I don't understand their strategy," the first officer commented. "Why not mass all there forces here instead of directing the bulk through that backwater."

"Isn't it obvious," the admiral noted. "You know the effects of the galatic edge as well as I. It is easier to see out of galaxy than into it. If they had sent all the ships we have yet detected we would have had a more difficult time, but we still would have won."

"Then why attack us at all if it is so impossible?"

"Simple, they get those carriers the galaxy, and the advantage becomes theirs. Their strategy has partially succeeded, drawing the bulk of our forces out here."

"Then I suppose this will be going on for a long time," the officer said resigned. "All we have on the sol vector is six ships, thirteen if you include the two transports and the five reinforcing battleships on their way."

"The GP have not sent anything to Earth?"

"It appears that we may have received the bulk of their available forces," the officer said. "It was still only three months ago that Caine destroyed their HQ, they can't find everybody."

"Sir," the Jurai soldier approached the raised platform. "The casualty reports are in. We lost three battleships and half the GP craft. Five more battleships have received severe damage. We count the enemy kills at twenty-seven of those cruisers and three hundred ninety-five of those all black fighters and fifty of the red and black fighters. We ourselves suffered moderate casualties due to Akuneko boarding actions, but the structural damage is minimal."

"Any hint of when the Akuneko will encounter Makibi?"

"Makibi ordered a communications blackout shortly after receiving command, sir," the officer answered, uncomfortable that he had no information. "We have no idea when the battle will happen, not much longer I would think."

"Good, relay this order, I want the 2nd task force to join the Hito on an Earth vector. The remaining battleships will remain for one day in case this is another feint, and then reform the picket to watch for further incursions."

"Yes sir," the soldier left to carry out his orders.

"Do you think six battleships will be enough, sir? After the Akuneko roll over Makibi there will only be the five reinforcing battleships and us."

"If you had been stationed around Jurai a year ago you would not be so worried."

Akuneko High-Carrier Dreadnaught, Earth Vector

"Milord, the Shiroi clan reports facing a massive force on the Jurai vector," the surveillance officer reported again. "They have suffered massive losses, including…" the man paused, shocked at the next information. "…seventy-three scions of the Shiroi clan. It seems that your plan has succeeded, the Jurai do not know that we are here." There was a hint of reproach in the man's eyes, but he looked to the floor and masked his voice well.

"And when will we cross into the Jurai galaxy?"

"We are entering a border system now, it is an unpopulated system," the officer noted. "But the sixth planet and one of its moons are habitable. We could leave an outpost behind sir."

"Do so," Lord Ryoi informed him. The soldier was about to leave but paused as his lord addressed him again. "It appears that you will keep your head this time." The soldier nodded respectfully and left for his station.

"They will never recover from this, Lord Ryoi," the battle-suited woman, her hair sparkled azure in the artificial light, noted as the soldier was dismissed. "Perhaps now the council will accept your Thane status?"

"It was never a question, Lady Ran," the black haired Akuneko answered. "They would have accepted me in time."

"Indeed, milord," she said dryly.

Washu's post, second moon, sixth planet

"There they are," Washu commented. 

"Washu-Sa…" Azaka was interrupted by an irate pink-haired genius.

"Washu-_CHAN_…" she yelled. Tenchi and Ayeka rolled their eyes.

"Washu-_chan_," the knight repeated, feeling very silly doing it. "If you can see them, then shouldn't we alert the others?"

"We're waiting until they're almost on us," Washu told him. She watched the hologram calmly, wishing she could use active scanners. "Like now."

The signal was a short burst of static without any words, it could have been taken for a natural occurrence if the enemy wasn't paying attention. With nearly one hundred twenty ships out there somebody was bound to be paying attention.

"Washu-chan," Ayeka noted, the scientist turned to her with a big smile. "What, praytell, are we doing out here?"

"If all goes well you'll see that after their fighters launch," the scientist told her. Ayeka noted the odd headband that Washu was wearing. She had given similar headbands to Nagi and Ryoko, as well as smaller versions to the two cabbits. She wasn't certain what that meant.

Akuneko Carrier, Warrior

"Lord Raisan," the Kuroi warrior looked down from his seat at the kneeling surveillance officer. "We have detected a signal originating from the second moon of the sixth planet, perhaps there is an enemy outpost here after all?"

"Nonsense, they would have attacked by now," the warrior responded. "Return to post."

Yagami's bridge, under the sixth planet's atmosphere

"Okay guys," Kiyone said. "That's your cue, we'll follow behind as planned."

"Good luck," Mihoshi said quietly. Ryoko and Rikyu merely nodded at each other as Nagi and Ryoko left the ship for the forming cabbit vessels outside. They rocketed forward of the four other ships, using their greater speed to push the charge. As the cabbits attacked, the battleships and Yagami broke atmosphere in a staggered formation centering on the cruiser. The Yagami stayed only a little ahead of its support.

"Okay, Mihoshi," Kiyone started. "You remember the video game we played in the academy?"

"Oh yes, the really big game that we didn't have to pay for right?" Mihoshi asked cheerfully. Of course she remembered it was the only thing nobody could beat her at.

"Okay well this is the same thing okay," Kiyone said. "Exactly the same thing."

"Really, it's all just one game," Mihoshi asked. Rikyu stared at the blonde in terrified fear. "Cool." Mihoshi suddenly looked very focused and prepared for action. Rikyu started to ask Kiyone something, but the teal haired detective cut him off with a sharp throat slashing motion. He shrugged and let it go.

Ryo-Ohki, bridge

Ryoko took the CD walkman had put the earphones around one of the computer crystals. This CD collection was part of what she had spent her work money on so recently. She already had song for this battle in mind.

"Let's give them a show they won't forget, Ryo-Ohki," Ryoko suggested impishly. "Broadcast this on all open channels." The cabbit meowed cheerfully, and soon the cabbit ship was filled with the CD's recorded sound.

"Got to keep them seperated!!" Offspring blared on.

Yagami bridge

"This has better music than that other game," Mihoshi noted. Kiyone rose her eyebrows.

"Oh yeah, two can play at that game," she told nobody in particular. "Yagami, Beethoven's fifth. Broadcast all frequencies." The Yagami added its voice to the friendly musical war, with the three battleships and Ken-Ohki soon following. Across all six ships tensions were released a little as they went into battle.

Akuneko High-Carrier, Dreadnought bridge

"M-milord," the surveillance officer spoke nervously. "We have detected six ships breaking atmosphere from the sixth planet. They are engaging our under flank now. They are all six broadcasting what sounds like music."

"Music," Lady Ran asked, confused.

"A morale trick," he waved it aside. "Only six ships? And they're attacking?" Lord Ryoi was amused. A hologram revealed the attacking force. Two of the ships had split far apart and then continued on parallel paths towards them. "Those two forward vessels seem to be those cabbits mentioned in the Ryoko file. We'll be able to destroy Ryoko and her bastard half-breed ourselves. Order the Flame and the Blade to release all their fighter squadrons." The soldier nodded and left to carry out the order.

"Forty fighters for six ships," Lady Ran asked. The hologram revealed Lord Ryoi's command being carried out as the cabbits passed moderate carrier fire to reach deep into the Akuneko under flank. As of yet neither had fired, and the remaining vessels were still half a second behind.

"I've heard these cabbits are powerful forces." Then the cabbits revealed how powerful they were. Cabbits were rare creatures, and they had a capability that was even more rarely used. The only previously recorded cabbit starburst was Ken-Ohki's in the battle of Jurai. Now two cabbits simultaneously erupted into starbursts, in mere moments the hologram revealed the destruction of almost sixty Akuneko cruisers. The Kuroi nobles and their soldiers gaped in surprise for a moment. "Release ALL fighter squadrons! Destroy them now!!!"

Battleship Tamashii, bridge

"It is a good thing that they're on our side," Korestu's first officer addressed him. The admiral remained impassive.

"According to the pirate and the bounty hunter the cabbits will be unable to fire again for some time yet," he noted. "And we are still vastly outnumbered, do not get to confidant in Makibi's plan yet."

Washu's station

"Okay boys and girls!!" Washu shouted, laughing maniacally. "I'm about to call down our friends!!" The scientist began clicking buttons the moment she noted the fighters disembarking. When she had finished ever tenth fighter on the screen suddenly seemed to go haywire. The scientist hmmphed and examined this. "Not as effective as I had hoped." She shrugged. "Oh well."

Akuneko High-Carrier, Dreadnought

The soldiers stared in horror as Lord Ryoi and Lady Ran rolled about on the ground, screeching in agony and gripping their heads. It had started only a few moments ago, as a signal was detected emerging from the second moon. The nobles had suddenly just started writhing in pain.

"Order a fighter squadron to the second moon, now!!" the surveillance officer ordered his lieutenant. "Somebody jam that signal!!"

Yagami, bridge

Rikyu was laboring to keep up with Mihoshi's impossibly fast keystrokes. The red-haired Akuneko was beginning to think that Mihoshi was something of an idiot savant. It would certainly explain her competence in this one area despite the odds against it. Behind them both, using a Washu holograph console, Kiyone was keeping track of the battle as it progressed. For some reason all the red and black fighters, like the one Rei had used, seemed to be going haywire. Kiyone quickly concluded that it must have been Washu. Then the detective noted one of her Jurai battleships slowing to a stop. They apparently trying to apply standard Jurai tactics, hold and fire.

"Damn. What is that idiot doing?" Kiyone opened one of the hologram communication screens to that battleship's bridge. "Captain Karyo, do not hold your ground!! I repeat do not hold your ground!" The magna missiles exploded, scattering three of the thicker fighter concentrations. Most of the fighters pushed outward by the force hung limply in space as their ships struggled to recover from the EMP.

"I appreciate your concern, Captain Makibi," the Jurai woman noted. "But victory is achieved by taking a position and holding it." Mihoshi worked to dodge the attacking fighters, seeming unaware of the impacts on the Yagami's shields. The six-one police cruiser was maneuvering in ways never intended by its designers. It was a toss up as to whether that was Washu and Kiyone's improvements or Mihoshi's piloting.

"When you have the greater force," Makibi agreed. "But we don't. Move now, you have enemy squadrons bearing on your position now."

"As you command," the Jurai woman answered, she was young, this was probably her first command. Considering the Jurai she might have even received it on the basis of her lineage rather than capability. The battleship began moving again, making sloppy evasive maneuvers. It had been too long since the Jurai had to fight against the odds, some of them appeared to not know how it was done.

"Damn, they're going to go down," she noted the scans on the ship as its shields were weakened by a continuous barrage from the swarming fighter craft. She turned to the blonde and sweetly yelled out "Mihoshi, you'll get extra points if you keep the bad guys from blowing up that battleship."

"Really? Oh-Kay! Let's stop those guys then!" She declared solidly. Rikyu's eyes widened as he fought the urge to scream. Mihoshi weaved and dodged making a more or less direct route to the embattled battleship. Rikyu watched in horror as the plant-like battleship began splintering and then exploded. They had arrived just short of time. 

"Oh shoot." Mihoshi commented blithely.

"Did anybody escape?" Rikyu asked Kiyone.

"I see five escape pods," Kiyone noted. "Try to get close enough for a teleport if you can."

"Aye, aye, Captain," Mihoshi shouted happily. The blonde was still unaware of what was really happening.

The battle from the outside

The Sol system's defenses had gained and made use of the iniative, but now the Akuneko had taken it back. The Yagami managed three passes over the Kagekiha's gravesite before heavy fighter concentrations forced it away. Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki were only just barely firing again, basically at random. Makibi's forces were on the run and locked in individual battles. All around them the system was swarming with fighters, a few of which, those with the red and black tracings, seemed to be directed at random and not a problem. That still left in excess of eight hundred fighters that the Jurai and allies had to avoid.

Return to Akuneko contents page


	10. No Need for a Melee

No Need for a Melee

Yagami bridge

"Mihoshi, try to avoid the fighters but concentrate on the big ships," Kiyone told her.

"The bigger the ship, the bigger the score?" Mihoshi asked cheerfully. The Yagami was holding up well, but they were experiencing several minor problems.

"That's right, Mihoshi," Rikyu supplied, he was getting the hang of this deception. The Akuneko had a bad headache, and he kept rubbing his head, but he attributed it to stress. "How many survivors did we pick up?"

"Twelve," Kiyone stepped out of her makeshift captains chair, a floating thing she had borrowed from Washu. "I'm going to be right back, we need to make sure they don't interfere with Mihoshi's….game." Rikyu nodded understandingly.

Kiyone didn't stop working on her way to the cargo bay though, a communication screen opened up next to her as she walked down the corridors. The screen was divided into four sections, one for each of the other ship's captains.

"What is it _Captain,_" Korestu demanded, arrogantly. "We are in the middle of a losing battle now is not the time for a chit chat."

"Can it, she's talking for a reason!" Ryoko snapped. She didn't have time for much else, Ryoko was manually directing most of Ryo-Ohki's moves at the moment. Both the cabbit pilots were periodically rubbing their heads for some reason, and both wore those metal headbands Washu had given them.

"Don't hunt the fighters, restrict yourself to defensive actions against them," Kiyone ordered, ignoring the chatter. "Concentrate on the carriers."

"But how are we…" the captain of the Gyanburu started to ask a question.

"Just do it!" Kiyone barked.

"Yes, Captain!" the officer responded, almost instinctively.

"Why don't ask something hard of me?" Nagi asked. Her bravado was marred by the fact that she was favoring one side. She must not have been completely recovered yet. Ryoko merely waved, busy avoiding a fighter clump, at least they were aided by the fact that the fighters were getting in each other's way. Captain Korestu said nothing, but nodded. Kiyone shut off the communication as she came to the cargo bay.

"Captain Makibi?" one of them asked her. Kiyone recognized her as Captain Karya, the woman couldn't have been much older than Kiyone. Then again by looks neither could Ayeka or Ryoko. "I should have obeyed you more quickly, my ship may not have been lost."

"We can't worry about apologies right now," Kiyone noted, the other woman blushed, her pride stung. "Yagami, scan visitors as friendly."

"What is that for?" Karya asked nervously.

"If we have an unauthorized teleport then the ship won't try to kill you," Kiyone explained. "I need you to get your crew into the guest quarters, when you can give me a list of who is healthy and what they can do. Yagami will open a channel for you to reach me, but don't come to the bridge, our pilot is…..focused, and I don't want anybody messing with that right now."

"Understood, Captain," Karya bowed and began to collect her survivors. Kiyone bowed in return and left to return to the bridge.

Washu's station

"Yep, here they come," the scientist had been rubbing her head since she had activated her device. The obvious headache was making her irritable. "I'm shutting off the Ego Jammer, we're going to need the shield just a little bit more." The Jurai watched as the woman's hands flew across her various keyboards. Soon a thick transparent shield surrounded them.

"They'll have to take us by ground forces now," Washu observed. "With what I have I can block ship energy OR objects, but not both. Everybody ready for a fight?"

"Hai!" came the simultaneous answers. The shield over them repelled a barrage of shots and then the fighters landed. Out of each fighter came two Akuneko in a sleek black battle-suit. Every one of them bore a laser rifle, the Jurai hoped that meant they couldn't use the same powers as Ryoko.

Dreadnought, bridge

"Your…actions…." Lord Ryoi gasped as he climbed back into his chair. "Have saved….your life." Lady Ran was leaning against the wall behind his thrown gasping for breath. Across the battle, Akuneko nobles were recovering their wits.

"Yes, milord," the surveillance officer responded. "We have identified their command ship. It is this vessel, the Yagami." A holograph readout appeared to the soldier's side, showing the form of the Yagami.

"Lady Ran," Ryoi commanded. "Take a boarding craft and capture that vessel. Bring five soldiers with you."

"Yes, Lord Ryoi," Lady Ran bowed and left the bridge.

"Also, milord," the surveillance officer paused nervously. "They have begun concentrating their fire on our carriers. As they near the ships our fighters become afraid to attack. They're afraid of hitting their own ships."

"I see," Ryoi narrowed his eyes. "Order thirty squadrons to pursuit and fifty to protect the remaining carriers."

"Yes, milord."

Ryo-Ohki

Ryoko felt much better suddenly, the headache was just gone. It was like someone had flipped a switch and poof went the pain. The space pirate smiled as another carrier went up in smoke. When Ryo-Ohki rocked from blast impacts, it wiped Ryoko's smile off her face.

"This is taking too long," she muttered. "Ryo-Ohki, can you teleport onto one of those ships if I get close?" There was an affirmative yowling, and Ryoko smiled again. "Contact Ken-Ohki." A holograph screen appeared in time to see Nagi's energy whip decapitate a boarder.

"What is it Ryoko," the bounty hunter asked calmly as she dispatched another of the black garbed Akuneko. Ryoko knew from experience that they wouldn't have the same capabilities as her. "I'm sort of busy."

"Nagi, have you ever launched Ken-Ohki from inside another ship?"

"Hmm, interesting idea."

Washu's station

Akuneko soldiers were firing fruitlessly at the Jurai warriors. Laser beams just bounced off Jurai formed force fields and the answering energy blasts were devastating. Compared to the guardians and Ayeka the common soldiers were easy to defeat, compared to Tenchi and the knights, Ayeka and the guardians were amateurs.

"Is that all of them Kamidake?" the bearded knight asked readying his staff for further battle. Tenchi wasn't yet wielding sword-Tenchi, opting for the bokken against these commoners, he didn't want to kill them. The knights, following Tenchi's unspoken command, did likewise. Washu had a number of gadgets on hand to help in the battle, but she mostly just stayed out of the way.

"Not quite yet," Tenchi shouted, pointing into the sky. Another four ships were landing, black and red ships, setting down among the ruins of those Tenchi and friends had demolished. Soon Akuneko clan warriors were attacking them. Now Tenchi produced sword-Tenchi and geared up for some real fighting.

Ayeka hung back with the log-like guardian robots and prepared to offer a support position since she had little hand to hand experience herself. Tenchi's face became grim, as he summoned the blue energy blade from the sword.

"At least they're not Kagato," he said. "Or Caine for that matter."

Ayeka appeared similarly grim, from fatigue as much as anything else. She knew that Rei's force field had been stronger than Ryoko's, and she thought that would be true of the average Akuneko warrior. Her mini-logs would not work this time, she would need to use the Jurai power, and she had already been drained by maintaining a force field. 

Ayeka had one other choice, she had seen it done before, and she knew the consequences. She reached for the Jurai power as the Akuneko charged forward, and gasped a little at the slight burning pain.

"Just a little bit," Ayeka whispered. "Taking a little bit won't hurt too much."

Yagami bridge

"Our visitors are secure," Kiyone informed them. "How about us?"

"Oh we're at level two, apparently," Rikyu said with mock-cheerfulness. A red light began bleeping over the bridge. Kiyone grabbed her rifle, she had finished plating it on the way to this system. It now appeared something similar to Galaxy Police issue.

"What's that?" Mihoshi asked, nervously.

"Just my part of the game, Mihoshi," Kiyone said.

"Do you need help?" he asked turning around in the pilot's seat. Mihoshi might have really been doing the piloting, but she preferred the co-pilot's seat.

"Captain Makibi? Are we being boarded?" Kiyone turned around and saw Karya.

"I thought I told you…never mind, can you pilot this cruiser?"

"My father has a space yacht that used to be a six-one," Karya asserted politely.

"Good, co-pilot for her," Kiyone pointed at the blonde detective who was still in her super-focused state. "And make sure she keeps believing this is just a game. She's very good as long as she doesn't know its real."

"Yes, Captain, I think I understand," Kiyone prayed silently and turned to Rikyu.

"Okay, let's go!"

"Yes, Captain," Rikyu said teasingly. Kiyone half glared at the smiling Akuneko as they moved down the halls. They realized that they were nearing the enemy as the sound of battle began getting louder. They turned a corner and passed the guest quarters where two Jurai soldiers in relative health joined them. It wasn't long before they hit the brig and the Akuneko.

At the head of the Akuneko was an azure-haired woman in black and red Akuneko battle-armor. She was slicing through one of Washu's force fields with her energy blades, and then she saw the approaching defenders. The light in the Yagami flickered on and off, giving an eerie cast to the hallway.

"Impressive defense system," the woman told them. "I'm already down by one soldier." Kiyone leveled the rifle at her, the Akuneko laughed. One of the energy blades disappeared and a force field was raised. Kiyone fired, the yellow and blue bolt connected with the force field and shattered it in an explosion that rocked the Akuneko woman backwards.

"It works!" Kiyone exclaimed, then fired again at the surprised boarders. Rikyu teleported behind them and began attacking with an energy blade of his own. The two Jurai soldiers moved forward with wooden staves and between the three the common soldiers were crushed. The Kuroi warrior stood up in semi shock, as Kiyone fired again. This time there was no force shell. The energy lance impacted on the Akuneko armor and exploded. The woman smashed against the wall and fell down, stunned by the impact this time rather than surprise. Kiyone walked up to her slammed the woman's face into her knee and threw her through the doorway of the active brig.

A communication screen appeared as the conflict was ended.

"Lady Ran, it seems that the cabbits have abandoned the field," a black haired Akuneko was saying. "Have you captured the Yagami yet?" Kiyone turned to face the man and pointed to the figure of "Lady Ran" stuck in the brig's energy wall. Then the rather annoyed policewoman snapped her energy yo-yo forward and forced the Akuneko out of the wall into the cell.

"You must be the commander of this force," the man smiled. "I am Lord Ryoi of the Kuroi clan. Who are you?"

"Captain Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police." She gestured for Rikyu to return to the bridge and relieve Karya.

"A peasant?" The man sounded insulted, then he laughed. "The Jurai are commanded by a police woman? I will accept your surrender now." He informed her confidently, Kiyone smiled.

"Let me explain to you the facts of life," Kiyone started. "You've lost."

"How do you see that?"

The corridors of an Akuneko carrier

Ryoko screwed her ears in annoyance at the blaring intruder alert sirens. There was something else bothering her, it had started recently. One of her friends was in danger, she could feel it, but she didn't know whom. All she could do was arrange for this battle to end as quickly as possible.

Ryoko walked along a few feet and finally came to a group of guards. They stopped in confusion when they saw an Akuneko clan warrior standing before them.

"Hey boys," she smiled and waved sweetly. This alerted them, no Akuneko clansmen would act in such a manner. They fired, laser fire bouncing off Ryoko's force field. She pointed to Ryo-Ohki sitting calmly on the floor next to her. "This is a cabbit, now watch, this is what a cabbit does. Ryo-Ohki, now!!!" The ultra-cute cabbit jumped off the ground flipped forward and began growing.

Dreadnought bridge

"Milord," the man was pale. Lord Ryoi turned aside from his conversation to see the surveillance officer again.

"What is it?"

"The cabbits, milord. They both reappeared for a brief moment."

"So you caught them running where-ever it is they retreated, why do I need to know that?"

"Milord, they each appeared inside a carrier. Ripped both to pieces from the inside out, and then disappeared again." There was a flash of red light and the officer's headless body slumped to the floor.

"Do you understand yet, Lord Ryoi?" Kiyone asked. "You're in hostile territory with limited resources. This will be at best a pyrrhic victory. I can gut your forces and the Jurai will pick you off easily afterward. You probably don't have what you need even now, you could live as pirates for a few years before they finally crushed you. The only possibility for your survival is for you to surrender to me."

"Surrender to a peasant?" Lord Ryoi was aghast, but his mind was already working on what she had said. His survival instincts were kicking in.

"If you fight I can guarantee you won't have more than twenty cruisers remaining. You'll have plenty of fighters, but unless you want to move at a snail's pace you'll have to abandon most of them. If you run, we both know that warships beat fighters in straight speed any day, I'll outdistance them and your carriers do not have effective defenses."

"You are proposing that I give myself, over to a peasant and a mere handful of warships?"

"M-m-milord," the crews new spokesman stuttered and stared at the cauterized stump of his predecessor's neck. "Two more ships have ripped inside out by the cabbits, and one of the enemy battleships has been destroyed, but there are five more within an hours distance of here."

"How many ships do we have?" Lord Ryoi snapped angrily

"There remain…." The man was appalled. "Thirty-three carriers, milord, and six hundred fighters." The woman was right, the expendable fighters were not receiving much damage. His brother would have fought on, but his brother was a fool, evidenced by the fact that Rei was dead.

The Yagami shook on the other end of the communication screen, but Kiyone remained smiling in the flickering light.

"Unconditional surrender," Kiyone demanded, hoping she read the man correctly. "I'll call off my warships, it won't be long before Ryoko and Nagi work their way to that flagship of yours." Ryoi, truly a coward at heart, calculated the risks to himself and decided.

"Agreed!" he shouted desperately. "Call off all attacks!!!" His officers stared at him in shock. "DO IT!!!" The clan warrior began crackling with red energy and his staff energetically acted to carry out the command. Kiyone smiled and opened a second communication screen on her end.

"Kiyone what happened, they've all stopped attacking," Ryoi heard someone ask his opponent.

"Did I win Kiyone," a woman's voice asked cheerfully.

"Yep, game over Mihoshi," she sounded like a mother talking to her child. "Captain Karya?"

"Yes, Captain?" another woman's voice, formal and restrained, but quite young.

"Inform the others, the enemy has surrendered."

"Yes, Captain!" the young Jurai answered.

"Lord Ryoi," Kiyone addressed him respectfully. The battle over she was prepared to treat him with the respect entitled to him by his rank. "I will meet you and your commanders on the second moon to inform you what happens next. Yagami out."

"Don't get any ideas, Lord Ryoi," a voice behind him said. He turned to see a pair of women with cute little furred animals on their shoulders. The speaker was a light blue-haired human cloaked in dark gray and wielding an energy whip at her side.

"Kiyone wasn't wrong about us getting here fairly quickly," the other, a silver haired Akuneko that had to be the last Shinku told him. She was dressed in Akuneko battle armor and smiled in a manner entirely unsuited to a clan warrior. "And I wouldn't try calling for any guards. We've already met them."

Washu's station

"Cease all attacks," one of the intact ships blared over it's audio systems. "Lord Ryoi has surrendered unconditionally to the enemy." The two standing Akuneko nobles immediately dropped their energy swords angrily as Tenchi and knight-Azaka regarded each other in shock. Knight-Kamidake was behind them sheltered by an exhausted Ayeka and the guardian-Azaka and guardian-Kamidake.

"Washu," Tenchi called for the scientist who appeared out of the extra-dimensional space she had crawled into as she had started being in the way.

"Whew, it was getting cramped in their," the scientist declared. "What is it Tenchi."

"I'm calling Kiyone and telling her we're taking the wounded, _all_ the wounded," Tenchi informed her. The two conscious Akuneko looked at him in surprise, he suspected that had thought to be executed. "Hopefully we can get some help, but a genius like you shouldn't have trouble handling some of this. Should you?" Whenever they wanted Washu to do something they had to puff her ego a little.

"Sure, it's nothing for a genius!!" Two little Washu puppets popped up on her shoulder and began cheering "Washu!!Washu!!Washu!!" while she laughed maniacally.

"Thanks, Washu," Tenchi said smiling. "I knew I could count on you. Azaka, you two, let's get our wounded taken care of."

"Yes, milord," one of the Akuneko responded instinctively. The other stared at him confused and then followed the other.

Battleship Hito

"The Akuneko have surrendered?" the admiral's eyes grew wide at the repeat of the news. "They won?"

"They had more than thirty carriers left," his first officer gasped. "The Tamashii and the Kagekiha were destroyed, the Yagami was on its last legs, and they surrendered?"

"You understand now why I requested for Makibi to be in command."

"That backwater boasts some impressive individuals."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	11. No Need for Medics

No Need for Medics

Yagami Bridge

"Captain Makibi," Kiyone turned around to see Karya standing behind her at attention. Mihoshi was sitting in her co-pilot's chair mercifully unconcious, somehow the fact of the battle had finally made it through her head. The blonde had fainted soon after Rikyu had tiredly confirmed her theory. "I don't believe that we're going to find any more survivors, and Lord Ryoi should be collecting his commanders."

"I hate this stuff," Kiyone muttered. "Okay, Rikyu-San, let's head over to Tenchi's clinic."

"Aye, aye, Captain," he teased. Kiyone turned a narrow-eyed glare on him. "Ah ah, watch it, remember who signs your paycheck."

"Ha," Kiyone laughed. "I can get another job." Karya watched the playful exchange curiously while Mihoshi started snoring. A Jurai soldier entered the bridge.

"Captain Makibi," he addressed her respectfully. Kiyone was getting a lot of that recently, and she wasn't sure that she enjoyed it as much as she thought that she would. "There is an Akuneko noble wanting to speak to you." Kiyone sighed, resigned, they had not put the survivors they picked up in the brig. This noble must have been one of them.

"Where is this noble?" she asked. The Jurai answered and she opened a communication screen to the guest quarters. "Teleport up here, I want you where I can see you." A silver-haired Akuneko appeared before them.

"Captain Makibi," the man kneeled before her and hung his head. "I am Rakkan of the Kuroi clan."

"What do you want?" Rikyu asked sharply. If anything the man was more contrite at Rikyu's question. It was unusual for Ryoko's son, but then the Kuroi seemed to be at the root of a lot of pain.

"Lord Ryoi will have their families killed," he told them, when he realized that they might not know what he was talking about he continued. "The families of the other five clans involved in this invasion. You have to prevent that." He sounded desperate.

"I'm not surprised," Rikyu mumbled. He had seen similar dramas on a smaller scale in his time.

"Why are you telling this, wouldn't this be a betrayal of your Lord?" Karya demanded.

" I have a sister in the Midori clan," he informed her. "And Lord Ryoi has not been accepted as Thane by the other clans."

"And why now instead of earlier?" The man really had no obvious reason to lie, and it fit Ryoi.

"There is no other way to stop him," he answered. "He is defeated, he will strike against the lesser clans for it."

"I will do what I can," Kiyone told him. She had indeed read Ryoi correctly, he was a selfish, little coward. Still it was more than plausibly a lie, hard to investigate, a distinct possibility, and the man did have something to gain from it. For now she would operate as if it were the truth, but she'd keep her eyes open.

"Thank you, milady."

"I am not a noblewoman," Kiyone corrected him. "Try Captain."

"Yes, Captain," he responded. He remained kneeling, Kiyone realized that he was waiting to be dismissed.

"If that's all, you can go."

"Yes, Captain." He stood up and bowed to Rikyu and Kiyone, a little deeper to Kiyone. "Milord." He then walked out.

"I'm liking the Kuroi less and less," Rikyu commented.

"Aren't I the noble here?" Karya asked, half-offended.

Ryo-Ohki

Ryoko was worried, something had happened. She could feel it, one of her friends was hurt. She'd had that feeling before, during the Caine incident when Tenchi was fighting Caine among other cases. This time the feeling hadn't come on suddenly, half-way into the battle it had started, since then it had been building.

"Something's wrong," she told Ryo-Ohki. "Something's wrong."

Washu's Station

The scene at Washu's station had not been what Kiyone expected. She knew Tenchi had convinced Washu to form a medical unit of some kind, and had passed along his command to the Gyanburu. Kiyone herself had sent some of the Kagekiha's wounded down, the ones that she felt would be better served by what Washu could offer. Then she began combing the battleground for more escape pods and survivors. When she finally arrived herself at Washu's station it was far more than she expected.

The Washu factor was expected, she had scavenged the destroyed fighters to build a variety of general medical equipment. The presence of ten Jurai medics was not entirely surprising either. What Kiyone didn't expect was the number of people there. Not only was the overflow from the Gyanburu, and the five reinforcing craft, here, but so were a large number of Akuneko common soldiers.

The nature of space battle meant that injuries were usually minor, from being bumped around as the ship was struck. Most major injuries were caused by boarding actions, or else made moot by the fact that the wounded party was also suddenly exposed to vacuum. Washu and the two Jurai medics worked with an Akuneko commoner on the few major injuries while Tenchi, the knights and a collection of uninjured soldiers performed first aid on those that needed less.

Next to Kiyone, Mihoshi stood yawning. Rikyu scanned the site, impressed, the MASH units he had seen in Earth battles were much less organized than this. Captain Karya was standing a little behind the teal-haired detective. Rakkan stood rigidly next to the Jurai. Kiyone had ordered her reinforcements to make sure no Akuneko craft left, she would have done it anyway, they might have their own help after all. Still it had been fifty minutes before 

"Mihoshi, don't touch anything," Kiyone ordered, she couldn't think of anything Mihoshi safe to assign the blonde to, that meant carting her around. "Do you understand?"

"Of course, Kiyone," she answered. "Hey, look there's Ayeka! She looks sick." Kiyone looked where Mihoshi was pointing and saw Ayeka wearily carrying supplies for the medics. She had a gray color that Kiyone didn't like.

"Kiyone-San, Lord Rikyu" Ayeka called happily as she saw them. The purple-haired princess handed off her bundle and shuffled towards them, attempting to maintain something of her usual demure manner. Then she hugged them both, and came to the dizty blonde. "Mihoshi, for once I'm even happy to see you."

"Really?" Oh thank you, Ayeka! I always knew you liked me."

"Ayeka, are you all right," Kiyone asked. "You look...gray."

"I'm just tired," Ayeka waved it aside as she pried herself from Mihoshi's grip. Karya blushed and bowed as Ayeka looked at her.

"Princess Ayeka," the young Captain addressed her. Rakkan noted the action and title. He went to his knees as was standard for Akuneko before higher ranked nobility.

"Milady." Ayeka looked down at him, unsure of how to react.

"Kiyone-San, the Akuneko commanders have not yet arrived," Ayeka told her. "I'm sure Lord Tenchi or Washu...Chan could use some help."

"Do either of you have first aid training," Kiyone asked the rigid pair of nobles.

"Yes, Captain," Rakkan answered from his kneeling position.

"I'm afraid that I do not, Captain Makibi," Karya said embarrassed. Kiyone turned to Rikyu.

"I've worked in MASH units before," he told her, he was already moving.

"You were on TV?" Mihoshi asked, wondering. Karya and Rakkan looked at her, confused, Kiyone merely rolled her eyes.

"Okay, I want Rakkan to talk to Tenchi anyway, Karya, could you help Ayeka," Kiyone added quietly hoping that the princess, who was already returning to her labors. "Watch her, I think she's pushing herself too hard." The woman glanced at Ayeka and nodded.

"Yes, Captain," Karya bowed and moved off to help Ayeka cart supplies around.

"Captain," Rakkan asked as he and the rest of the group began moving among the wounded. "Who is this Tenchi?" Kiyone saw him wrapping an arm bandage around an Akuneko soldier.

"That's Tenchi," Kiyone explained, she waved to him and started to pick a path in his direction.

"He'd be the next king of Jurai if he wanted it," Mihoshi added helpfully.

"If he wanted it?" The boy saw them and waved back after finishing the bandage.

"Hey Kiyone, Mihoshi," he called, and walked over. He looked at the Akuneko warrior suspiciously. "Who's your friend."

"This is Rakkan of the Kuroi," she introduced the man, who was already kneeling and addressing Tenchi as "milord."

"Please don't do that," Tenchi said embarrassed. "I get more than enough of that from the Jurai around here." Rakkan looked up and scanned from side to side, confused, this Tenchi was the first noble of any sort who appeared to not like being addressed as was proper.

"As you wish," he answered slowly, raising from the ground.

"You need to talk with him about Lord Ryoi," Kiyone informed Tenchi. "I'll fill in for you in the meantime."

"Something important I assume," Tenchi said tiredly. "Well okay, let's go find somewhere to talk, but make it quick. We have a lot of work to do."

"Yes, milord," Tenchi rolled his eyes and started walking. Knight-Azaka, who had been watching, filed in behind him and the Akuneko. The knights still considered themselves Tenchi's bodyguards, though Kamidake was with the more severe cases under enforced bed rest.

"How can we be sure that he isn't lying, Lord Tenchi?" the bearded knight asked after the Akuneko had explained matters.

"We don't know," Tenchi agreed. Then he thought to himself, "But we can't ignore it either."

"I swear that it is the truth, milord," Rakkan made Ayeka seem loose.

"I didn't say I wouldn't do what I can," Tenchi answered. "For now find somebody and patch them up."

"Yes, milord."

The Akuneko soldier was staring hard at Mihoshi while Kiyone was immobilizing his arm and shoulder. He was finding it difficult to believe that this blonde was on the Yagami's crew, he had seen the maneuver's it had been making in battle. The Yagami had actually out maneuvered some of the less skilled fighter pilots.

"Now where was it," she was saying. The blonde was twisting and turning her storage cube and producing a stream of oddball objects. "It's a neat magazine, lots of pictures and comics and stuff."

"Okay, I'm finished here," Kiyone declared as she made sure the sling was tight. "Come on Mihoshi pick up your stuff."

"Huh, oh okay," Mihoshi began frantically putting stuff back into her cube. "Oh there it is!! Don't worry I can find another copy." She took a folded magazine and handed it to the confused Akuneko. This was Kiyone's plan to keep Mihoshi moderately out of the way, talking to the patients. Most of the Jurai had already been treated, after all the Akuneko still outnumbered them by quite a bit.

Kiyone was bandaging a torso gash when Nagi walked up, Kiyone noted that she was still favoring the one side. Apparently the bounty hunter had aggravated her injuries a little.

"Well, we're here, Captain," Nagi smiled at the title.

"Thanks Nagi," Kiyone responded, finishing up on her most recent charge. "Could you find Tenchi and Captain Karya? I'll find Rikyu and contact the captains of the other ships."

"Grabbing everybody you can?" Nagi quipped.

"Oh yes." Kiyone answered. "Come on Mihoshi, we got to go."

"Kiiyoooneee, I'm tired of walking, when will we get to sit down?"

"Pretty soon, Mihoshi," Kiyone promised. Then the policewoman walked unerringly in Rikyu's direction. Ryoko's son was finishing up on his own patient as the Miho-Kiyo pair walked up. He turned around to greet them before they announced their presence.

"Lord Ryoi is here," Kiyone explained. "I think you and Ryoko should both be there."

"Looks like we came in at the tail end of things anyway," he agreed. "Everything is pretty much under control here. Lead away, Captain oh my Captain."

"Everybody's oh so funny today," Kiyone huffed before walking off. They met Ryoko, Lord Ryoi, and his commanders at about the same time the captains of the five reinforcing ships arrived.

"Miho-Kiyo, Rikyu" Ryoko waved, the collected Akuneko clansmen glared at the undisciplined space pirate as if she was an embarrassment. Kiyone regarded her carefully, she was worried about something. "You're all safe!" She teleported across the barren ground to meet Miho-Kiyo and Rikyu. Then she hugged Rikyu in one of her uncharacteristic displays of emotion.

"Uh...Ryo...Mom," Rikyu mumbled. "Could you let go of me?"

"I'm sorry something's bothering me," she said as she released her son.

"Captain Makibi," one of the reinforcing commanders addressed her. "You were given command of these forces for battle, but that does not give you the authority to set terms."

"Will you accept the crown prince of Jurai?" Azaka demanded as Tenchi arrived.

"Tenchi!" Ryoko seemed happier now, she hugged him as she had Rikyu. It wasn't one of her normal glomping embraces. "You're safe too!"

"Ryoko, Let go!" Tenchi protested. "Of course I'm safe, don't you think you would have heard otherwise!" 

Rakkan stood a little ahead of Azaka, where the Jurai knight could watch him. If it weren't for the fact that everybody was treating this as if it were rather normal he would have intervened. The Akuneko moved to a position behind Kiyone as he arrived. Ryoko watched the man carefully, upon noticing him. Rakkan, on the other hand, lowered his head as Ryoko regarded him. The space pirate recovered her composure and released Tenchi, she was beginning to think that she was worried over nothing.

"Lord Tenchi," the captain gasped. "I did not know that you would be leading these surrender proceedings."

"Would it be too much for anybody to just call me Tenchi?" the young Jurai-warrior asked nobody in particular.

"Hey, we call you Tenchi," Mihoshi put in.

"Mihoshi," Kiyone shook her head embarrased.

"Hey, where's Ayeka," Ryoko asked.

"I'm right here, Ryoko," Ayeka responded irritably. She sounded tired, as the reversal to Ryoko's proper name also showed, but she was apparently fine. Ryoko breathed a sigh of relief as she turned about to see another of her friends safe and sound. Then she stopped in mid motion. "What's the matter, were you expecting me to be dead?" Captain Karya and Nagi were with her. Karya moved to stand next to Rakkan behind Kiyone, eyeing the taller Akuneko warrior with a little trepidition.

"Ayeka..." Ryoko had seen a more severe version of that grey pallor once before, immediately after the fight with Caine. Achiko had looked like that after burning out some of her Jurai power in fighting the monster.

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	12. No Need for Talk

No Need for Talk

Second moon surrender talks

"Oh God, she knows," Ayeka thought to herself. Ryoko was white as a sheet, and looking at her as if she might fall down at any given moment. Soon after Ryoko had froze Kiyone's eyes had narrowed, and Ayeka knew she was processing the information. 

The princess didn't think the situation was too serious. Achika had burned herself out much quicker and thoroughly, and she had lived another fifteen perfectly happy years, a short time compared to the lifespan of most Jurai, but still a lot of time. The purple-haired princess hoped that meant that she hadn't cut her life _too_ short.

"Is there something I should know," Kiyone asked. Ayeka smiled at her, and glanced her eyes towards Ryoko.

"Nothing that we can't discuss after talking to the Akuneko," she answered.

"No. _Now_. Not…" Ryoko started.

"After the talks, Lady Shinku," Ayeka reiterated, also remembering to refer to Ryoko by her proper title. "Unless you would care to debate the issue more forcefully." Ryoko debated the issue with herself, and decided that she didn't have a choice.

"_Immediately _after the talks," Ryoko stipulated. Ayeka was surprised at how concerned Ryoko seemed to be over her condition. She would have expected the pirate to take advantage of the situation to get into Tenchi's heart.

"Come on, you two," Tenchi told them. He had tuned them out as soon as it had begun to sound like their normal bickering. "We need to get this done with."

"I'm coming, Tenchi," Ryoko said angrily.

"Coming, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka added. Kiyone had sent down the table from the Yagami's storage, a lot of the Masaki's older furniture ended up in there somewhere. Tenchi and the girls sat down across from Lord Ryoi and a pair of green haired Akuneko carrier captains.

Kiyone sat next to Ayeka, eyeing the princess carefully. She was going to ask Rikyu to sit next to Ryoko, but he was already on his way. Ranged down from Kiyone was Koretsu, the captain of the Gyanburu and the five reinforcing captains. Captain Karya had been offered a seat, but she denied it, giving Koretsu a hard glare as she did. The commandless Jurai and the Kuroi traitor stood behind Kiyone eyeing the Akuneko carefully. Azaka took a similar position behind Tenchi. Nagi, claiming to be protecting her vengeance, stood at Ryoko's back.

"Kiyone, can I sit down now?" Mihoshi asked desperately. Kiyone turned around and regarded Mihoshi wearily, but that was normal for Kiyone dealing with Mihoshi.

"Yes, Mihoshi," she answered. "You can sit down now, but please be a good girl and be quiet."

"Um okay, Kiyone," Mihoshi sat down against a rock, and began searching through her cube for something to do. Kiyone hoped she got lucky and found something before they all drowned in Mihoshi's possessions.

"Let's get this started, Captain Makibi," Lord Ryoi spat. "You can play with your little friend later." Kiyone turned around and glared at the man.

"Excuse me," Tenchi interrupted. Yosho's tutelage had prepared Tenchi to be very authoritative when he wanted to be, and dealing with Ryoko and Ayeka had taught him a thing or two about diplomacy. "I believe that I am the one you should be talking to."

Tenchi was always uncomfortable with his heritage, but in order for this to work it needed to be him. Ayeka was trained to do this kind of stuff, but her temper and pride would trip her up. As for Kiyone, now that the battle was over the Jurai would undercut her at any given opportunity.

"And you are?" The Akuneko noble was looking at the warrior standing behind Kiyone.

"He is the Crown Prince Tenchi Masaki," Ayeka answered.

"You're a mere boy," Lord Ryoi noted, disbelievingly.

"Your commanders are going to take this fleet back to their homes," Tenchi told him ignoring the comment. The Jurai were not surprised at Tenchi's manner, but those closest to him were. Tenchi had only ever acted like this before facing Kagato and then Caine.

"My commanders," Ryoi asked, taken aback by the "boy's" tone. "What about me?"

"I am going to remand custody of you to the Galaxy Police," Tenchi told him.

"I am a noble of the Kuroi clan!" he snapped. "I will not be treated like a common criminal."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it," Ryoko had to speak at this. "They actually have some rather decent prisons. If you don't mind seven hundred years inside a mailbox."

"Ryoko," Tenchi addressed her without taking his eyes off Ryoi. "Now is not the time."

"This is the remains of the Shinku clan," Ryoi spoke to his colleagues laughingly. "An ex-convict and her bastard son." Ryoko half-rose from her chair, but stopped, worried about what would happen if a fight started. Next to her, Rikyu was angry, but under control. After all, the Kuroi had caused Ryoko much more in the way of direct pain. Only a few of the other Akuneko were as amused as their leader.

"Now, as I said, you will remain here under Galaxy Police custody," Tenchi repeated. Now he would find out whether or not Rakkan was telling the truth. "And I will ask the Shiroi, Midori, Orenji, Murasaki, and Kiiroi clans to report to me if _anything_ should happen to any of their family." About ten of the Akuneko exhibited looks ranging from surprise to hope, the remaining Akuneko seemed insulted. The effect was more than what Tenchi had hoped for.

"How could…?" Ryoi whirled to face Rakkan. "You! You have betrayed your clan!" It was a stupid action, perhaps two-thirds of the remaining Akuneko commanders looked at him in horrified shock.

"So it _is_ true," one of the green-haired Akuneko snapped.

"I am the Thane," Ryoi declared. "I determine what is law for the clan!"

"You are not Thane," Rakkan countered. "Not until the council accepts you."

"And you will no longer be put forward," the speaker from before declared. "What further terms do you have Lord Tenchi?"

"I will not be caged like a peasant!" Ryoi shouted before he teleported away. Five of the commanders vanished with him. All the remaining participants rose and prepared for an attack that did not come. Kiyone noted Ryoko apparently shielding an irate Ayeka, though it might have looked to other people as if she were interposing herself between the princess and Tenchi. Kiyone pulled up a communication screen, the first officers of all the six remaining battleships appeared.

"Lord Ryoi and five of the Akuneko commanders have teleported away from the talk," Kiyone explained. "Keep your eyes open for any craft breaking away from the main fleet." The Akuneko were performing similar ground to ship communications.

"No!! Don't do anything!!" Tenchi ordered, surprising everyone this time. He was truly enraged at Lord Ryoi and he most definitely didn't want the further death that would be caused by the Akuneko trying to help the Jurai. "Or we won't know who we're shooting at."

"Yes, Lord Tenchi," the Akuneko backed down from him.

"Nagi!! Ryoko!!" Tenchi turned to the cabbit pilots, and they both knew what he wanted.

"On my way, _Lord _Tenchi" Ryoko answered and sure enough Ryo-Ohki was soon overhead. She turned to Ayeka and virtually ordered her, "Don't you do anything either!" Then Ryoko was gone into space as well. Nagi joined her a little more sedately, Ken-Ohki arriving at a calmer pace as well.

"Kiyone?" he turned to the policewoman, but Miho-Kiyo were already gone, with the Yagami passing overhead.

"Do not worry, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka told him, she sat down again wearily. "There is no possible way that he can escape." The princess yawned, leaned against the table, yawned, and started sleeping. Rikyu glanced at her and shrugged.

"Lord Tenchi," he whirled to face the Akuneko commander. "We will accept whatever commands you will give. We wish to be finished with this madman's war."

"Then it looks like we'll all soon be able to go home."

Yagami bridge

"Damn it," Kiyone shouted. There were fifteen all-black fighters scattering to separate directions. "Use what magna missiles we have." She wanted this bastard alive, Nagi, Ryoko and the Jurai had different ideas. In moments all the fleeing fighters were destroyed, including those that the Yagami had incapacitated.

"I'm sorry Kiyone," Mihoshi apologized, noting that Kiyone was mad. If Kiyone was mad it probably meant that she had done something stupid.

"This one isn't your fault, Mihoshi." Kiyone had the feeling that the entire scene was a ruse, but she couldn't prove that now.

Second moon, surrender talks.

"Tenchi," Kiyone's face appeared on a holograph before him. "Fifteen fighters fled, and all were destroyed. We're coming back." Ryoko arrived first, the ship-form cabbits being faster than any of the other large craft out there. Nagi had sent a message informing them that she was going to remain in space, since she didn't intend on hanging around much longer.

"We got him, Ten…Oh no!" Ryoko began making a beeline for Ayeka. Ryo-Ohki meowed in surprise as Ryoko's motion caused her to fall to the ground, the cabbit was missing Sasami.

"Let her sleep, Ryoko," Tenchi told her, catching her arm. His voice had returned from that air of command he sometimes achieved. He was just using his normal patient, lecturing tone now. Ryoko turned to him with an angry look.

"Tenchi," she said annoyed. "Do you think Ayeka is capable of safely wielding enough power to keep up with you and the knights?" Nobody else heard her, they were too far away, and Ryoko/Ayeka battles were too common for Azaka to take much note of Ryoko's actions.

"Ryoko, she's just tired." Ryoko threw off Tenchi's grip, walked over and gently picked up Ayeka.

"I'm going to take her to Washu," Ryoko told him before rising off the ground, and flying in the direction of Tenchi's clinic. Kiyone and Mihoshi arrived a little bit behind the excitement. Kiyone noted Ryo-Ohki and then Ayeka's absence.

"Where's Ayeka?"

"Ryoko took her to Washu's," Tenchi said. "I don't understand those two, they could pester each other no matter what's going on around them."

"Tenchi didn't you notice that Ryoko has been on eggshells around her this entire time? She's worried about Ayeka, very worried."

"What's wrong with Ayeka?" Mihoshi asked.

"Ryoko asked me if I thought Ayeka could safely wield enough energy to keep up with me and the knights," Tenchi told her, Azaka heard this time.

"Lord Tenchi, are you saying that Princess Ayeka burned herself out?" the knight asked. "Do you know what that means." Of course he knew what that meant, his mother died young because she had burned herself out fighting Caine.

"She couldn't have."

Washu's station

"Shouldn't she have woken up while I was bringing her here?" Ryoko asked. Ayeka had maintained a heavy, half-feverish sleep while Ryoko was carrying her. Now she was lying on a bed still sleeping with Washu fidgeting over her.

"I only know of five cases of Jurai burn out," Washu said. "And the records are sketchy, but I doubt the danger is immediate, or even soon in coming."

"Then why hasn't she woken up?" Ryoko sounded angry, but she was pacing a hole in the ground. Stalking like a tiger in a cage.

"Well, um let's see," Washu started. "Other than the sedative I gave her she's also de…"Washu stopped herself from completing that phrase. "Completely exhausted, that might have something to do with it. Other than that, I just don't know." Ryoko sat down on midair, floating cross legged about three feet off the ground.

"Washu," Ryoko heard Tenchi call as he worked his way through the now sparse numbers of wounded. "What's wrong with Ayeka?" He looked to Ryoko, but the pirate refused to return the look.

"She burned out about a quarter of her energy reserves," Washu answered. "At least she hasn't recovered beyond that yet. As I was telling Ryoko, I don't know enough about this to say whether that is serious or not. When we get back home I should be able to say more."

"That won't be long," Tenchi told her. "The Akuneko are already preparing too leave, all we need to do is hang around and watch them leave."

"Why didn't you stop her?" Ryoko demanded. She landed and pushed her face into Tenchi's.

"I didn't know," Tenchi was surprised by the ferocity of the question, backing off.

"Didn't know? Didn't know!" Ryoko yelled. "Did you think a few days of training would bring her up to mine or Nagi's level?"

"I seem to remember you almost killing yourself in battle once," Washu noted to Ryoko.

"That was Kagato, this was avoidable," Ryoko snapped, then started jabbing her finger at Tenchi. "He let my sister cut her life short because he wasn't paying attention!" Ryoko rose off the ground and teleported away.

"She's looking for somebody to blame," Washu told Tenchi. "She'll calm down."

"But is she wrong?"

The system

All the ships had finally left, and the system was again unpopulated. It remained quiet and serene for another hour. The remains of the battle were floating off, slowly being spun into the void. Then one of the dead fighters flared into life, and altered course deeper into the Jurai galaxy.

Yagami sick bay

When Ayeka woke up slowly, and let her eyes adjust to the lack of light. There was a dull ache in her limbs that, since she had started actually training with Yosho, she had begun to associate with the day after intense physical activity. It didn't take her long to notice that someone else was in the room, the snoring was a clue. She stretched out and walked to the wall, searching for the light switch. Somebody else found it first.

The lights flared on and Ayeka recognized Yagami's sick bay from when Yosho had been here. She wasn't looking the right direction to see who had turned on the lights. Instead she saw Ryoko, asleep against the bulkhead. Ayeka looked at the pirate and realized that she had been crying.

"She's actually worried about _me_? You'd think she'd be jumping with joy."

"She called you her sister," Washu said from the door. Ayeka turned around to look at her confused.

"Her sister? That's ludicrous, we're always fighting," Ayeka was quiet, trying to avoid waking up Ryoko. The princess, still a little stiff, sat back down on the sick bay bed and leaned against the wall, maintaining a proper posture, of course. "She hates me."

"If Ryoko hated you, one of you would be dead," Washu told her. "You're her oldest friend, Rikyu is her only natural family. Why is it so ludicrous to believe that she thinks of you as family? You even visited her in prison."

"It was too good an opportunity to laugh at her."

"Twice a year?"

"So if she thinks I'm family," Ayeka asked. "How long did it take her to use this against me with Tenchi. How he shouldn't waste himself on someone who'll die centuries ahead of time."

"Ah, Tenchi. You've brought up an interesting subject."

"Did something happen to Lord Tenchi?" Ayeka asked concerned, she glanced at Ryoko hoping the noise didn't wake her. She didn't want to deal with Ryoko gloating on that subject right now.

"Ryoko has stopped talking to Tenchi," Ayeka stared at her for a moment.

"You must be joking."

"Unfortunately, I'm not," Washu said. "She blames Tenchi."

"She once tried to convince him not to rescue me," Ayeka protested.

"Because she thought it was hopeless, she thought you'd both die."

"I don't believe she'd get mad at Tenchi because of me. Unless he chose me over her, of course."

"What would you do if you thought Tenchi was responsible for something happening to Sasami?" Ayeka looked at her stunned, but couldn't answer. "Get some more rest, we'll be home soon. And I mean that, get some rest, or I might have to sedate you again." Washu stood up and left the room, shutting the lights off behind her. Ayeka looked to where she could hear Ryoko snoring, stunned. Ryoko had stopped talking to Tenchi, the way was open for Ayeka. So why did that feel wrong?

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	13. No Need for a Home

No Need for a Home

Tokyo street

"So what exactly are we looking for," Rikyu asked.

"At the moment?" Kiyone asked, half-annoyed, half-teasing.

"Well, other than, Mihoshi," the Akuneko responded as he looked into the next shop window. It was a book store, and he didn't see Mihoshi inside. "You said, house hunting, but you never said what sort of house you were looking for."

"I don't think my apartment is going to cut it anymore," Kiyone put in. There was a sudden crashing sound about two stores down. Kiyone noted the sign marked a toy store, which hopefully meant that nothing was broken. The newly promoted Captain slumped, frustrated. "I think we found her."

"It would appear so." They arrived to the sound of a familiar wailing cry.

"I didn't mean it, I'm sorry!!"

"Look at my store?" the shopkeeper was yelling. "You tumbled every single shelf in the place." Then Mihoshi saw Kiyone and Rikyu standing outside, gaping at the scene of destruction.

"Kiyone, I didn't mean it," Mihoshi whined. "I was just trying to get the…oh there it is." Mihoshi's unhappiness vanished as she picked up the three-foot tall plush cat that was on the top of the pile.

"Mihoshi," Kiyone sounded tired.

"What is it Kiyone?" she asked, Kiyone wasn't mad, so she wasn't to concerned.

"Nevermind," Kiyone said. "Sit down outside and wait for us."

"Can I have this?" the blonde asked, brandishing the stuffed animal. Kiyone thought about it.

"No, Mihoshi, maybe before you made this mess, but not now," tears started to well up in Mihoshi's eyes and she walked outside dejectedly to wait for her friends. Kiyone could hear her crying outside. "I'm sorry for the mess my friend caused, perhaps we can clean it up."

"You'd better, or I'm calling the police on that moron," the shopkeeper yelled. Kiyone glared at him, Mihoshi was an idiot, and a disaster area, but it wasn't like she did anything intentional.

"Excuse me," Rikyu said walking past the fuming shopkeeper. To the man's surprise the red-haired Akuneko picked up one of the fallen free standing shelves and held it about three feet off the ground while Kiyone cleared the space underneath it. 

Rikyu couldn't use his abilities as well as Ryoko, she could generate much more power in a lot less time. On the other hand he had a lot more physical strength, which made him very strong indeed. This didn't go well with his slim outward appearance, in fact it would have seemed rather comical if one wasn't there.

"Okay, you can put it down now," Kiyone said. Then Rikyu moved to another shelf and repeated the process. "Good thing these shelves are plastic, there doesn't seem to be any real damage."

"Now what were you saying about your apartment?" Rikyu asked calmly as he held the second set of shelves up.

"Well, it was fine for me and Mihoshi," Kiyone started. "Finished. But since Karya and Rakkan don't seem to be interested in leaving anytime soon I'll have to find something bigger."

"Well that makes sense," Rikyu said as he easily hefted the next shelf. "Where are Karya and Rakkan anyway?"

"At the Masaki's, studying Earth culture."

Masaki Residence

"So, this Kimi is trying to steal Toshi's heart from Aiko?" Karya asked.

"Yes, but she doesn't really love him," Ayeka confirmed, munching another cookie. She liked these soap operas more recently, she could almost convince herself everything was normal.

"Its because she blames Aiko for everything that's ever happened to her?" Rakkan questioned.

"Yep, but what she doesn't know is that her cousin Tadaaki has been manipulating her all this time," Ryoko said. Watching this soap opera with Ayeka was one thing that hadn't overly changed from her routine. "Because he hates her for proving that his brother, Seiki was embezzling from their employer."

"But didn't he save her life when that Togan person tried to kill her?"

"Oh that was because Togan went to school with him in France and knew about Tadaaki's illegal businesses."

"And he wants Kimi to suffer, not just die."

"Oh I see, and what about Nyoko?"

"The maid? She's in love with Tadaaki, but is too shy to say anything."

"Does she know what he's like?"

"They haven't said yet, I don't think so, Ryoko believes that she does, though."

The toy store

"So how are things between you and your mother?" Kiyone asked as Rikyu set down the last of the shelves. They started trying to organize the toys and put them back on the shelves now.

"Well, at least I understand why she left me here," Rikyu answered. "But we haven't really done anything but exchange fighting tricks."

"I feel sorry for her," Kiyone commented, tossing a smashed electronic toy aside, calculating the cost as she did so. "Especially now, she's been trying to live a normal life ever since I met her here. She must think everything is crumbling around her." Kiyone glanced outside at the pouting Mihoshi. "I know how that feels."

"Yeah, I can imagine you do," Rikyu laughed. "Have you heard anything about Ayeka yet?" Kiyone was quiet for a moment.

"Washu did a full battery of tests," Kiyone answered, starting again to put toys on shelves. The shopkeeper was only looking at them in shock, or more precisely, Rikyu. The Akuneko was now floating up to put things on the higher shelves. "But there isn't much information on Jurai burn out. She could die fifty years from now, or she could live another thousand."

"That sounds like a long time to me," Rikyu noted. Once the shelves were arranged it didn't take them much longer to clean up the place.

"As a Jurai royal family member, Ayeka should be looking at another _five_ thousand," Kiyone explained.

"Well, I guess that makes it signifigant."

"Excuse me, how much do I owe you for the damages?" The shopkeeper looked from her to the man with spiky red hair and yellow eyes.

"Uh…no problem…cleaning up was enough," he said nervously.

"Are you sure?" Kiyone asked, she didn't want this coming back at her later.

"Yes ma'am," the man nodded vigorously, watching Rikyu like a mouse watches a cat.

"Okay, I guess this is it then, sorry about the trouble." Kiyone walked out the door ahead of a yawning Rikyu.

"Oh, its no problem at all," the shopkeeper affirmed nervously. When the door closed behind the pair he let out a heavy sigh of relief.

"Okay, Mihoshi," Kiyone addressed the other detective. "We're finished here, let's go."

"Okay, Kiyone," Mihoshi sniffed.

"You still haven't said what kind of house you'd like," Rikyu noted. "I can't help you if you don't give me any information."

"I don't know for sure," Kiyone admitted. "Four bedrooms, maybe on the edge of town like Tenchi's place. You're the one with businesses all over town, shouldn't you know about real estate?" They began to pass into the suburbs now.

"Four bedrooms?" Mihoshi repeated confused. "Why, do we need four?"

"You're going to get your own room, Mihoshi," Kiyone answered.

"So is that the only reason you asked me to join you today," Rikyu asked teasingly.

"I can't have my own room," Mihoshi whined. "What if I have a nightmare again, or what if that Rei person comes back and I'm all alone?" Rikyu laughed as Kiyone turned to face Mihoshi.

"Listen, Mihoshi," Kiyone started. "Before you knew me you had your own room right?"

"Yeah," Mihoshi admitted, half-crying.

"And think about it," Kiyone started. "You could take a lot of stuff out of that cube and know where to find it all the time."

"And you wouldn't be mad at me for making a mess?"

"No, it would be your room," Kiyone said encouragingly. "So you get to make it look like what you want it to look like."

"Oh-kay," Mihoshi cheered. "Let's go find a house!"

"Yeah, let's go," Kiyone repeated. "Mihoshi!" The blonde paused and turned around to look back at Kiyone. "Stay _with_ us this time."

"Um…Okay, sorry, Kiyone."

"That's okay, Mihoshi," Kiyone repeated, trying not to sound irritated. "Now what were you saying?"

"Oh, it wasn't important," Rikyu waved it off. They walked on for a few minutes more, occasionally having to stop for Mihoshi related incidents, but nothing as bad as that first one. They chatted back and forth as they walked, eventually the plots of land began to get larger and less modern.

Kiyone stopped as they passed an empty house. It was an old building, but in good condition. She could see through a worn down fence an overgrown rock garden in the back of the place. It stared at them with dark, empty eyes, lonely and pleading. 

"Kiyone, that house scares me," Mihoshi whispered. Kiyone didn't answer her, the teal-haired policewoman walked past the for-sale sign and stepped into the shadows of the inside. Rikyu came in behind her with Mihoshi reluctantly following. Kiyone wandered through it randomly, it was certainly big enough to serve her purposes. "What if there's a ghost?"

"There are no such things as ghosts," Rikyu told her. "Just space pirates and alien invaders."

"How do you know?" Mihoshi asks. "We've seen a ghost before."

"That was Ryo-Ohki and Sasami playing a game Mihoshi," Kiyone corrected, not mentioning that she had been terrified at the time. "I like this house, and it shouldn't take too much to fix it up."

"Yeah a few hours clean-up," Rikyu noted. "Same paint, a new fence. A lot more furniture."

"I have that," Kiyone noted. "In the Yagami, all the furniture we collected during the Kagato thing. You wouldn't believe how much stuff they bought on that trip."

"Well, let's make the call."

"Didn't you hear me say that I don't like this place?" Mihoshi whined after them.

Galaxy Police Academy

Mitsuki regarded the cadet with a hint of annoyance. In little more than a year she had gone from head of the special crimes unit, to just another detective. Now she was training rookies, it was embarrassing. It was _that_ woman's fault, the redhead told herself. Kiyone Makibi was off revealing traitorous conspiracies and fighting alien invasions while she sat here and lost everything she had every worked for. 

Kiyone always came out on top, the only time Mitsuki had beaten her was due to a little creative computer work involving their final academy rankings. Even when Kiyone _volunteered _to return to that primitive little dust ball fate hands her a promotion and Jurai commission all in one swoop, and that was a month ago. Kiyone was a hero, while Mitsuki was a scheming little nobody training cadets.

"Well, cadet," she spoke in her mock cheerful way. The red-head was smiling broadly, but her manner was friendly in a way that intended insult. A sort of condescending sneer that was heavily vieled under a smile and sparkling eyes. "Let me see what you can do."

The cadet's black eyes narrowed and he smirked a little viciously. The man brushed at his short cropped, black hair. Mitsuki was of the opinion that he had only recently cut his hair. She wasn't certain of what species he was, the tail meant that he wasn't human. He looked somewhat familiar. Mitsuki thought that she should recognize him from somewhere. She would have pegged him for an Akuneko but for the eyes, they weren't the yellow that people were discovering was normal for Akuneko. Those eyes were cold black pits in the center of the whites of his eyes.

"As you wish, Mitsuki-San," he answered respectively, in the same manner that Mitsuki was friendly. The cadet took the pistol and sneered, Mitsuki thought that he was insulted to be using it. The cadet fired three times, and the target revealed a decent score.

"Well, you've improved from pathetic to average," Mitsuki commented, in that false complimentary tone. "If you have to fight I'd stick to hand to hand if I were you."

"Of course, Mitsuki-san," he responded patiently. "Out of curiosity, why do you hate Captain Kiyone Makibi?" All pretense of friendliness vanished, the red-head made sure no one was around to see, and then slammed the arrogant cadet against the wall.

"What do you know about that?" she hissed. The man smiled at her, despite the fact that she was trying to crush his throat.

"Just that you and I have a common interest," the man smiled at her. He shouldn't have been so comfortable considering Mitsuki was trying to crush his throat. Mitsuki's eyes narrowed and then she laughed.

"I thought I recognized you, Cadet _Ren_," she let him go and laughed. "I could turn you in, make Kiyone look like a fool by catching her escapee." A blade of black energy appeared under Mitsuki's chin.

"Don't waste your life," he instructed her. "I am going to destroy Kiyone Makibi and then I will make you powerful, you will be my public face."

"You want me to be your puppet?" Mitsuki asked nervously. The black blade vanished. "And how are you going to send Kiyone into the pits again, I doubt they'll believe in her going outlaw again, Kagato already tried that."

"Oh we're not going to defame her," the man smiled. "You are going to avenge her, and become the hero that she already is." Mitsuki smiled.

"Interesting idea," the red-headed policewoman smiled sinisterly. "I like it."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	14. No Need for Cameos

No Need for Cameos

Tokyo, Nerima district

Ayeka should have been enjoying this, by all appearances it had been a nice relaxing month since they returned home. Sasami was her normal bouncy self. There were no intergalatic villains banging on their doors, and Ayeka had not once had to struggle to maintain her decision to not fight with Ryoko. Add to that the fact that the pirate wasn't interfering with her and Tenchi any more and it should have been a wonderful time.

The truth was that Ayeka wasn't happy at all. Every time Ryoko looked at her, it was like she was looking at a fragile figurine. She didn't have to worry about getting in a fight with Ryoko, because the woman would rather die than enter such a fight. Sasami wasn't upset because they hadn't told her anything, and Tenchi. Well, Ayeka was like one big guilt trip to him. Also, Ayeka was not blind, Ryoko was hurt every time Ayeka was with Tenchi, and Tenchi almost winced every time Ryoko ignored him. As for Washu, she had her own ideas about Ayeka recently. 

Given all that, it wasn't surprising that she had decided to take a little trip into town on her own. Well, Ryo-Ohki was with her, so she wasn't completely alone. The cabbit was there to keep an eye on her, just like she did with Sasami. Ayeka resented being babysat, and Ryoko's concern was still a somewhat alien thing. Still, she was alone enough for her purposes.

"Well, this looks promising," Ayeka said to the cabbit in her arms. She looked up at the sign and walked in.

"Are you coming from a wedding or something, sugar?" the brown-haired girl behind the counter asked. A monstrous spatula was strapped to her back.

"Whatever _are_ you talking about?" Ayeka asked as she sat down at the counter. "This is the proper mode of dress for a Jurai princess." Ayeka never had much worried about keeping who she was secret.

"Uh huh, whatever you say," the girl responded shrugging her shoulders. She handed Ayeka a menu, and then continued. "Do you want anything to drink while you decide?"

"I'll just have a soda thank you," Ayeka answered. "Do you have IBC cream soda?" She looked over the menu and discovered about twenty different kinds of okonomiyaki. Somebody sat down next to Ayeka as she was trying to find something non-okonomiyaki.

"Excuse me," the person next to her asked cautiously. "Do you have any connection with Saotome Ranma at all?" Ayeka turned to face a girl with short black hair.

"I don't have the slightest idea what you are talking about?" she responded. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Oh, Ranma's father has a history of engaging him to various women in exchange for food," the girl answered. "So with the wedding dress and all."

"This is _not_ a wedding dress," Ayeka protested. The brown-haired girl with the spatula came back.

"You know, I hadn't thought of that," she noted. "She's right, though, Ranchan's dad is a pretty sorry individual. Nearly ruined my life."

"So you two used to be in love with the same man," Ayeka asked, then thought to herself. "Maybe I can get a little advice from them."

"Well almost every guy around here chases or used to chase Akane," the brown haired girl gestured to the one in short black hair. "And every girl, including me, used to chase or still chases Ranchan. Why do you ask?"

"Perhaps you can help me with a problem of my own," Ayeka suggested.

"I don't know," Akane said. "Ukyou and I don't have the most normal of relationships."

"Well, how did you resolve your conflict?"

"One of Ranchan's other fiancees bombed my restaurant," Ukyou answered. "Put a friend of mine in the hospital."

"Ranma finally declared that I was the only one he loved," Akane added.

"And I was more concerned about my friend."

"Oh this is excellent," Ayeka clapped. "You're perfect, it sounds just like my situation.." she became a little less enthusiastic. "...used to be." Ryo-Ohki meowed.

"Why is your rabbit meowing," Ukyou asked. Ayeka pulled out of her temporary funk.

"Oh, Ryo-Ohki is cabbit," Ayeka explained. "She's here so Lady Shinku can make sure I don't hurt myself, treating me like a child really. Perhaps if you have some carrots?"

"Sure, how many?"

"A case should be fine," Ayeka answered, drawing disbelieving glances. Ukyou returned with a case full of carrots though, and she and Akane watched, stunned, as Ryo-Ohki quickly began to devour it.

"So is this Lady Shinku related to you in some way?" Akane asked, looking away from the cabbit. Ayeka stared at her strangely. "It certainly seems she worries about you like some parents I know."

"Yes, I expect it does appear that way," Ayeka answered. "It has been revealed to me recently that she does seriously see me as a sister. She even called me that recently, when everything changed, apparently. That is part of the problem. You see, until a month ago, Lady Shinku was my rival for Lord Tenchi's affections."

"So what's the problem," Ukyou asked. "It seems like she's given up on this Lord Tenchi person, you don't think her new attitude is a ploy?"

"You're scared aren't you," Akane noted. Ayeka thought about it a moment and nodded. "So what happened a month ago?" The princess didn't consider this, there was no reason in her mind to hide any of the following. It was all perfectly normal as far as she was concerned.

"Well there was this attempted invasion on the edge of the galaxy," the two girls looked at Ayeka strangely, but she just continued. "And I and Lord Tenchi were protecting Washu-Chan's, I believe she called it an Ego Jammer, while Lady Shinku and Ryo-Ohki, here were fighting in space."

"The cabbit was in the battle?" Ukyou said in disbelief. "What did she do make them stop and talk about how cute she is?" Ryo-Ohki meowed thankfully at the compliment.

"Hmm?" Ayeka turned to Ukyou. "Oh I'll show you that later, when I go home maybe."

"So what happened in the battle," Akane asked, staring hard at Ukyou to tell her not to interrupt. Ukyou shrugged defensively and passed out a trio of okonomiyaki.

"I am not a trained warrior, or a pirate like Lady Shinku," Ayeka explained. Then she stiffened her back in pride. "But I am one of Jurai's royal family, and I can wield the Jurai power like any knight." Then she slumped losing any hint of proper posture as she explained the next part. "But, I used too much, I drained myself and kept channeling until the battle had ended."

"You pushed the envelope a little," Akane shrugged. "So what, that doesn't explain why this Lady Shinku would give up your rivalry."

"I didn't 'push the envelope'" Ayeka corrected, returning to her haughty attitude. "I burned out a portion of my power, and that has a serious consequence for my people. Ry...Lady Shinku blames Lord Tenchi for it. She won't even talk to him any more."

"She's mad at him because her rival made herself a weaker fighter," Akane questioned her. "That's weird."

"Really, and I don't see what your problem is," Ukyou said. "It seems like she's pulled herself out."

"I never expected it," Ayeka explained. "She was the only one there who could possibly have known what I did, and we've been fighting back and forth for two thousand years." Akane spat out her soda while an okonomiyaki fell out of mid-flip and fell to the floor. Ukyou was frozen in mid-action. "Whatever _are_ your problems?"

"Did you say two _thousand _years?" Akane asked.

"Yes, and if I can continue without interruption," Ukyou and Akane nodded. "If anything I thought she'd use it against me, 'Tenn-chiii, why waste your life with someone who will die centuries early?'" Ayeka managed a decent imitation of Ryoko's tone and voice.

"What's this about dying?"

"Oh, the Jurai power keeps us alive for a long time," Ayeka explained. "I...burned some out...so..."

"Oh," Akane said quietly. "I understand now"

"That must be tough," Ukyou comforted. "So how long do you have?"

"We don't know," Ayeka said. "Lord Tenchi's mother lived fifteen years afterwards, but she died young before we went back in time to fight Caine, so that might be something else. I don't know." Ukyou and Akane seemed to be taking things surprisingly easy, until you considered the mass of demons and martial artists that were in their lives. Ayeka of course never noticed, she still thought of much of this as normal. "Anyway, the last thing I expected was for Lady Shinku to blame Lord Tenchi for my burn out. She seemed to think he should have noticed it and stopped me."

"So, now she's not talking to him," Akane reasoned, she still had much more experience with female anger than Ukyou. "And perhaps, you're not as enthused about chasing him as you used to be?"

"Everything feels wrong, Ryo...Lady Shinku, treats me like I'm a helpless little girl, and I've had a few...what you call 'dates' with Lord Tenchi, but they just make me feel worse." Ayeka sounded angry now. "I'm the one with royal _Jurai_ blood, not on the direct line of kings like Lord Tenchi, but I'm not some space pirate who's the last of her clan either."

"You don't think he loves you, do you," this was Ukyou's department. She had discovered the same thing about Ranma a year ago. "And you're beginning to doubt if you really love him." Ayeka nodded sadly, and sniffed.

"And Ryoko is being entirely unfair," Ayeka added. "Lord Tenchi winces every time she even looks at him. It was my decision, not even the knights knew what I was doing. There is no reason to blame him."

"You've stopped calling her Lady Shinku," Akane noted.

"Oh dear, I have, haven't I," Ayeka agreed. "It is her proper title, and it would be rude of me to refer to a fellow noble by anything other than their proper title. Even if she is an orphan space pirate with no modesty."

"Uh huh," Ukyou said. "So you've decided that you aren't really interested in this Lord Tenchi, and he isn't interested in you." Ayeka was about to protest and then stopped.

"Yes, it seems that I have," Ayeka confessed. That admission actually made her feel better. "My, that feels exceptionally relieving."

"Hey, Ucchan," a yellow-shirted boy in a bandanna walked into the store. "Sorry, I'm late."

"No problem, Ryouga-Honey," she answered. "It only took you a month this time." He waved as he walked through the storefront, into a back room.

"Five...four..three...two...one," Ukyou counted.

"Ukyou, what happened to my room?"

"You're in the store room, Ryouga."

"Oh." Ukyou started counting down fingers again for the giggling Akane and curious Ayeka. "How do I get out?" Ukyou gave Akane a long suffering look and went off to help the boy out of the store room and up to his own room.

"Oh no," Ryouga said as he was escorted up the stairs. "Is that another of Ranma's fiancees?"

"This is _not _a wedding dress," Ayeka insisted. "Really, how can you mistake this simple thing for a wedding gown." Akane looked over what Ayeka was calling a "simple thing" for yet another time.

"It's not really something most people would wear outside of a religious ceremony," Akane told her.

"Well, perhaps by this world's standards," Ayeka admitted, still full of pride. Then she noticed the time as Ukyou started walking down. "Oh dear, perhaps I should be getting back home, it's been quite a while. Thank you for the talk, I believe that I needed that."

"Believe me," Ukyou responded. "I know how talking to strangers can be comforting."

"Yeah," Akane agreed. "Maybe we can do it again sometime."

"Perhaps, I will," Ayeka agreed, as she walked outside. "That...'okonomiyaki?' was excellent, by the way. Ryo-Ohki, perhaps you can give me a quick ride back home." The cabbit meowed and leapt into the sky, changing into her spiny ship-form. As Ayeka looked to her left she saw another boy, not quite as tall as the first, stop in horror at seeing her.

"Oh no," the boy said. "Who'd pop engage me to now?"

"Ranma?" Ayeka asked Akane and Ukyou, who were staring at the ship-form cabbit in surprise. They nodded and she waved at the terror stricken boy pleasantly. "Don't worry sir, I never heard of you before now. Ryo-Ohki." Ayeka vanished and the ship-form cabbit shot away for the Masaki house.

"Uh, Akane, Ucchan," Ranma asked as he stood next to them. "Who was that?"

"An alien princess," Ukyou answered.

"I wish she'd been around when Cologne was still a problem," Akane added.

"She certainly has the age advantage."

"That girl is older than the old ghoul!!" Ranma shouted. "You have to be joking."

Mindscape

"You left far too early," the master lectured. "It took me centuries to become ready for my task. You have had mere weeks."

"Perhaps I was already more ready than you ever were," the student responded, haughtily. "You did fell to that boy. It took them all to defeat me."

"You know not what you say, fool," the master did not seem angry at all, merely annoyed.

"Back off, old man," he answered. "There are none to command me now, not even you, master. The shadows are mine."

"Hmm," the master laughed. "As you wish, I have eternity. Perhaps the next student will be more intelligent." The dark-haired Jurai warrior vanished with a mocking smile on his face.

Galaxy Police New Headquarters, a month later

"Well, you've kept up your end of the bargain so far," Mitsuki said as the cloaked Akuneko teleported in. He had ceased masquerading as a cadet as soon as he had made himself known to Mitsuki. She was the head of the fugitives tracking department, it wasn't nearly as prestigious as special crimes had been, but she was on her way up. "So what do you want now?"

"My brother is still alive," the Akuneko told her. "He's hiding, planning a way to take revenge on Makibi and that Jurai prince. Perhaps we can use this, I have business with my brother anyway."

"So you want me to find them and then what?"

"For now just find them," he told her. "I will tell you more as it happens." The Akuneko vanished. Mitsuki smiled.

Note: Some of the events referred to above take place in my Ranma 1/2 fan fic, the Visitors and their Coat. 

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	15. No Need for Renovation

No Need for Renovation

The new Miho-Kiyo place, outside

"I still don't believe the price you got on this place," Rikyu said as he tore down the last of the fence.

"Considering the lack of what Earth considers modern conveniences," Kiyone shouted from where she was painting the side of the house. "I'd say the price was fair."

"I know why it was so cheap," Mihoshi whined. Kiyone had her weeding the rock garden, figuring that was a Mihoshi-safe task. It hadn't proved otherwise, yet. Kiyone rolled her eyes as Mihoshi continued. "This house is haunted, just like that ghost ship."

"Captain," Kiyone turned a paint-spattered face towards Karya. "Should there not be people we can hire to do this...manual labor?" At least the noblewoman wasn't wearing those same kind of impractical robes as Ayeka preferred. She was, on the other hand, covered in dust and a cobweb or two.

"We could, but that's not nearly as satisfying as doing it yourself," Kiyone answered, she glanced over at Mihoshi. The blonde was trying to pull a weed out of the ground, and it was apparently proving stubborn. "When we get to something we can't do ourselves, I'll talk to somebody."

"Yes, Captain," Karya said, resignedly. The Jurai looked over to where Rakkan was helping Rikyu clear the area. "He certainly seems adapted to this, it certainly makes sense for such barbarians." Kiyone laughed and took a moment to look over at the men. Rikyu dropped his shirt several minutes ago, when the sweat had soaked it through.

"Those 'barbarians' provide a wonderful view though," Kiyone whispered. "Don't they?" Karya blushed as she looked at Kiyone in shock.

"Captain!" Kiyone was about to further tease the proper Jurai woman when she saw the Mihoshi debacle in progress.

"Duck!" Everybody was down to the ground only a moment after Kiyone. 

Mihoshi finally pulled the weed out of the garden, tumbled back several feet, hit the pile of discarded lumber, which fell in scattered directions. One of those fell on the plank Kiyone had her bucket of paint on. The bucket flew up into the air and rained paint across the area finally coming to rest on another plank of wood holding the toolbox the Akuneko were using. An array of tools rocketed back across the yard, eliciting a scrambling crawl from Karya and Kiyone. The disaster stopped with three broken windows and a tie-dyed rock garden.

"MI-HO-SHI!!!!!!!!!!!" Kiyone yelled. The blonde was lying senseless in the pile of wood for a moment before lurching to a sitting position. Everybody else took the exasperated yell as a clue that it was safe to stand up.

"Ow, my head," she muttered before breaking out into a wave of tears. "This house hates me!!!"

"The house doesn't hate you, Mihoshi," Kiyone corrected, irritably. "You're _always _this clumsy."

"I'm sorry, Kiyone," Mihoshi wailed. "I didn't mean it."

"Of course not," Kiyone said. "You never mean it, um, there's no furniture yet, so why don't you go try cleaning the inside of the house and Karya will finish the garden."

"Inside the house?" Mihoshi whined. "By myself?"

"Listen Mihoshi, there's no such thing as ghosts," Kiyone instructed her. She picked up the duster from where Karya had dropped it. "And we're all out here anyway, so you can just call us if you need help, okay."

"Okay," Mihoshi sniffed. "I'm sorry, Kiyone." The blonde detective started shuffling into the house as if she were going to a funeral.

"How may I ask is it that she is so incredibly stupid?" Karya asked.

"I was wondering that myself," Rakkan added from where he was collecting the tools from the ground.

"I've theorized that she's the result of some experiment to age people faster," Rikyu noted. "You know she looks all grown up but is really only ten or something." The other two who had known Mihoshi for less time nodded as if that made sense.

"She's the great-granddaughter of the head of the Galaxy Police," Kiyone told them, to the sound of a collective "Oh," except for Karya, anyway.

"What's wrong with that?" was the Jurai's only question, to which Rakkan turned to her with a confused expression on his face.

"I'll be right back, going to open another can of paint."

Inside the house

"Hello, Mr. Ghost?" Mihoshi was saying nervously. "I'm just going to clean things up a little, okay?" She was gingerly dusting away cobwebs and dust. "You don't have to do anything to me, okay."

Actually, even Mihoshi had to admit that the place wasn't near as scary now after they had been cleaning it for a couple of hours. In fact, with the windows open and the sun shining it was actually beginning to look quite cheerful. As the minutes progressed Mihoshi forgot that she was afraid of the house, and then she was cheerfully switching from dusting to sweeping. Unfortunately her sweeping was doing more to redistribute the dust than collect in a pile.

"Oh my, its really getting very dusty here," she said, coughing a little and reaching out to grab a candle holder for support while she coughed away the dust. The candleholder bent down from the wall and the floor vanished from under Mihoshi's feet.

"Mihoshi, you're supposed to be cleaning in here," Kiyone yelled coughing through the settling dust. "Mihoshi! Mihoshi? Damn, where'd she go now?"

Underneath the house

"That hurt," Mihoshi whined, rubbing her head. She pulled out her GP pen and twisted it, showing that the tiny thing could also duplicate as a decent flashlight. "Where am I?" The light revealed an old stone wall corridor carved in Japanese kanji. Everything was covered in wall to wall dust. 

"Oh no," Mihoshi whined. "I thought I was almost finished." The blonde picked a direction to go in her usual highly observant manner. "This way looks less dusty." She didn't bother to look up at trapdoor in easy reach.

About fifteen minutes after she had started walking Mihoshi came to fork in the tunnel.

"Oh this is a pretty poem," Mihoshi said, reading the kanji on the wall and following it along. The blonde didn't pay attention to where she was going and tripped over a piece of rubble as a spear came out of one end of the wall and into the other. "Ouch!" She stepped up and then turned back around to read what she missed in her fall. Mihoshi clotheslined herself on the spear. As her feet flew out from under her, a curved blade narrowly missed slicing her legs off.

"Kiyone!!!" Mihoshi whined. "Where are you Kiyone?" the blond tripped backwards again, caught her balance, and then realized she'd dropped her GP pen back down the corridor. She walked forward, stepped on a stone button in the floor and jumped as a boulder smashed down where she had just been standing. "WAAAA!!!!" She ran in random direction.

Inside the house

Kiyone was examining the room Mihoshi had been working on, or at least where she had seen the most recent cloud of dust. She realized that trying to find Mihoshi was an almost impossible feat, after all, this was someone who could wander into Washu's lab unknowing and unhindered. She looked about where the dust was settling, and noticed that a section of the floor had noticeably less dust than the rest of the floor.

"Okay, here's the broom," Kiyone noted. "I assume she set it down there when it started to get dusty and she was coughing and sneezing from the dust. Now that would put her standing here, and with all that dust she'd have been coughing and sneezing quite a bit." Kiyone reached her hand out and grabbed onto a candleholder.

"Now isn't that interesting," Kiyone noted, she had been planning on removing this thing. They had found its counterpart on the floor on that first day. She looked down and noticed that she was standing on that area where there was less dust coverage. Kiyone moved aside and then pulled down on the candleholder, opening up a trap door in the floor. "Mihoshi..." Kiyone said wearily, she walked back outside.

"I have to go find Mihoshi," Kiyone called back. "I think she managed to find some kind of secret passage."

"Secret passage?" Rikyu repeated.

"Do you need any help, Captain Makibi?" Rakkan asked.

"No, I think I got this one," Kiyone answered. "Just finish up out here, I'll be right back."

"We'll be right back," Rikyu corrected.

"I said I have this covered."

"I haven't done a real excavation in a while now," Rikyu told her. "I'm coming with you."

"Excavation? It's probably just a bunch of old wooden planks."

"Better than an auction house."

"Ok, whatever," Kiyone gave up. "We'll be back as soon as we find her." Rikyu followed her inside with an air of eagerness.

"Yes, Captain," Karya said cheerfully. The Akuneko warrior next to her looked at the former Jurai captain as if she'd blown a tube somewhere.

"Why are you so cheerful?" Rakkan asked. Karya looked up to him and smiled.

"How long would it take you to get us to Lord Tenchi's?" she asked. Rakkan was about to ask why, but then realized what she was talking about.

"You think they'll take that long to find her?" Karya rolled her eyes. "Good point. I can get us there just as it starts."

The tunnels

"Interesting inscriptions," Rikyu said reading the wall as they walked down the corridor, he was a little behind Kiyone. The policewoman wasn't interested in what this place was for at the moment. "Something about a demon caged in crystal speaking to people in dreams and seeking escape."

"I know which way Mihoshi went," Kiyone said. Rikyu looked up at Kiyone staring straight down a turn in the corridor.

"Really? How can you...ah I see," Rikyu said as he saw the remains of triggered booby traps extending as far as the light could reach. "You don't think anything happened, do you?"

"To Mihoshi, or around Mihoshi?" Kiyone asked.

"Silly question," Rikyu admitted. They walked, crawled, skittered and climbed down the fairly well blocked corridor. Half an hour and who knows how many feet later they came to a circular chamber filled a number of artifacts in various niches. The items seemed familiar to Kiyone for some reason, but aside from the one katana she couldn't place them. There were no other exits, though, and no sign of Mihoshi.

"Either we missed a fork on the way here," Kiyone noted, it wouldn't be too surprising considering how much of the tunnel was obscured. "Or there's another trap door somewhere around here.

"Hey, should you be doing that?" Kiyone asked. Rikyu turned to her as he started to pick up a jade statuette of a hideously smiling figure.

"If there were any traps here don't you think Mihoshi would have triggered them?" he asked as he lifted the statue, and pulled a rod of some kind up with it. Kiyone heard the click and whirr of machinery and dived, pushing Rikyu out of the way of the salvo of darts that his action had produced.

"You were saying," she asked as she looked down at him, right into those yellow cat's eyes of his. "Wonderful view indeed."

"I'm glad you agree," Rikyu said as he was rubbing the back of his head. Kiyone blushed as she realized that she had spoken out loud. He looked back up into her blue eyes and froze, there faces were inches apart. "We were down here for something."

"We were," Kiyone agreed. She leaned down closer, and whispered, teasingly. "What was it again?"

"I don't know, but this seems good enough," he leaned up and their lips met. As the kiss became an embrace the pair rolled over a stone tile raised slightly above the rest of the floor. The ground fell out from underneath the surprised pair. "Damn it!" Rikyu was rubbing the back of his head where he had clipped the edge of the pit.

"Well I guess we know where she went," Kiyone said, looking up at the closing trapdoor above them. "Do you want to continue..." then she smiled. "...or continue?" Her GP pen was up there where she'd dropped it with her first dive, so as the trapdoor closed, the last vestige of light vanished.

"Let's find Mihoshi," Rikyu suggested. "There are too many surprises here." He heard Kiyone laugh, she didn't laugh often. She smiled sometimes, often when she was certain of victory in a battle of some kind, but laughing wasn't something that was common to Kiyone. Rikyu liked the way it sounded.

"I suppose your head couldn't take much more of this," she agreed with a laugh. Rikyu took a moment to try and decide whether that was what he thought it was. He waved that thought away, however, not because Kiyone wouldn't know those jokes, but because he couldn't see her making them. "Could you perhaps give us a light."

"Hmm? Sure," he was soon holding a slim red dagger of energy. The red light didn't reveal too much, but it did show them enough. It showed them Mihoshi's GP pen on the ground, for example. Kiyone picked it up and turned on its flashlight.

"Okay, we're fine again," Kiyone told him. Rikyu nodded and let the dagger dissipate.

"Well, there's only one direction to go, so I guess she went that way," the Akuneko suggested.

"I think I know where we're going," Kiyone told him, a glint in her eyes. "And unless we find her on the way there, then she's fine."

"Demon in a crystal," he repeated, then thwacked himself on the forehead. "Washu's cave."

The Masaki Residence

In the living room the television area seemed to be unofficially split into Jurai and Akuneko sections. Ryoko lay reclining on the left side couch as normal, and Ayeka was sitting in her normal proper seated position on the center couch. Karya was sitting on the left side couch, while Rakkan was floating cross-legged a little behind and above Ryoko. All four were munching cookies and quietly watching the flickering images on the box in front of them.

"No, I cannot do this any longer," a woman's voice spoke from the television. They all stopped eating and leaned forward expectantly. "It is plain that you care nothing at all for me."

"Aiko, how can you say that?" a man's voice demanded. "You know I'd never betray you with Kimi."

"I know Kimi is a beautiful woman," she turned away from him. "And I'm just a plain little girl you can string along." The four watchers leaned forward even further, eyes peeled open wide.

"No, Aiko, you could never be plain, not to me."

"Oh, Toshi do you mean it?"

"You know I do Aiko, Aiko will you...*" The scene switched to some translated American monstrosity with lots of little blue creatures living in mushroom houses. All four of the expectant viewers fell to the floor as the first words were spoken.

"Papa Smurf! Papa Smurf!" a little blue man in glasses was saying. He continued to complain about somebody named Gargamel and how he had some other "smurfs" captive and was going to use them to make gold.

"Yes, we must go rescue them!" Mihoshi shouted from where she was standing behind Ayeka's couch. Ryoko scrambled for the remote and changed the channel back as the credits were running, she resignedly gave the control back to Mihoshi and returned to her couch.

"Of course," Ayeka complained as she stood up and returned to her seat. "It never fails."

"As soon as it gets to the good part _she_ has to come in," Ryoko completed the thought.

"They've been leading up to that the whole month," Karya whined. "Now we'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out what happened."

"Excuse me, Mihoshi-San," Rakkan asked, thinking of something else. "Did Captain Makibi and Lord Rikyu find you?"

"Oh, were they looking for me?" Mihoshi asked. "I hit Washu's cave and came straight here."

"The passage she found hits Washu's cave?" Karya asked. "I thought Washu's lab was in another dimension."

"Don't worry about it," Ryoko told them. "She's talking about the cave Washu was sealed in when we got here. It won't take me a moment to get there and back." Ryoko lifted off the ground and teleported away.

Washu's Cave

Ryoko appeared in front of the cave and started walking down the cave, still irritated at Mihoshi. This was actually a relaxing place to come since all the booby traps had been removed. Recently Ryoko had been coming here a lot, especially when she was mad at Tenchi. The fact that she came here to relax, a place inundated with a power that out of all of them only Tenchi could tap, hadn't yet occurred to her. She still blamed him for Ayeka's burn out, no matter how much her rational mind told her that was silly.

As Ryoko strolled down the cavern corridor she began to her muffled gasps and moans coming from down in the main chamber. She had a fair idea of what was going on, considering her past it would have been incredibly strange for her not to know. Maternal instinct warred with her normal attitude, briefly and successfully. The strongest image of Rikyu still on her mind was that five-year old she had left behind to spare him from living her life.

"Kiyone, Rikyu, are you two down here?" she called ahead. The sounds of passion were quickly replaced with hints of a scrambling Ryoko was also familiar with. She continued walking along as if she didn't suspect anything, "Mihoshi's at the house." Ryoko entered the main chamber as Kiyone and Rikyu were putting on their shoes. A red-faced innocent smile was plastered to Kiyone's face.

"Thank you, Ryoko" Kiyone said as if she were out of breath. "We were worried about her." Ryoko raised an eyebrow.

"Well, let's go get her," Rikyu suggested, rushing up the cave exit.

"Yeah, we don't want Mihoshi getting frantic, do we?" Kiyone asked, following him.

"Uh, Kiyone," Ryoko said, Kiyone paused and turned back, maintaining the innocent cheerful expression she saved for her part time jobs. "Your t-shirt's inside out."

"Oh," she said with a relieved laugh. "Must have been tired this morning," she started to fix the problem, turned even brighter red, folded the shirt back down, and looked to her left. Ryoko followed the gaze and noticed something black and silky in the shadows. "I'll...uh...fix it in a moment, better get going, Ryoko?" She gestured ahead of her, the Akuneko woman took the message and went out ahead of the policewoman. Kiyone followed a moment later, with her t-shirt on right side out, Ryoko noticed.

"So did you two have fun getting here?" Ryoko asked as they came out into the sun.

"Well, we saw some.... interesting items while we were down there," Rikyu said. Kiyone gave him a sidelong look at the word "interesting", he shrugged in response.

"Yeah, a tunnel from your new place to here," Ryoko commented. "I imagine you did, like what, for example?" They were walking into the Masaki house by this point.

"Uh...."

"There were those artifacts in that first room," Kiyone supplied helpfully.

"Yeah and some of those booby trap weapons are worth something, too," Rikyu added, on the right path now. Then they noticed Karya and Rakkan watching TV with Mihoshi. Kiyone narrowed her eyes, her own embarrassment forgotten for a moment.

"So, how was the soap opera?" she asked from just inside the living room.

"Captain Makibi!" The Akuneko went to his kneeling as if he expected to be punished on the spot. Karya bowed deeply and held attention. Mihoshi turned around and looked at Kiyone cheerfully.

"Captain! I know how this must look, but you see...." Kiyone sat down and waved them off.

"I was going to call a break anyway," Kiyone said.

"Oh, hello, Kiyone," Mihoshi said, then she added cautiously. "I'm sorry about the tunnel."

"That's okay, Mihoshi," Kiyone said, comfortingly as Rikyu sat next to her on the central couch. "I think it turned out okay."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	16. No Need for a Movie

No Need for a Movie

The path to the Masaki house

Tenchi thought back across the last two months and couldn't help but be depressed. He would have thought that having one of those girls suddenly decide to stop chasing him would be relieving. No, he had known that it would be a relief if they had settled the matter themselves. He just wished it hadn't been settled in this way, Ryoko angry with him for Ayeka's burn out.

Rationally he told himself that the knights should have been able to notice if it was possible. They had centuries, hell, millennia, more experience than he did. He kept telling himself that there was no possible way for him to tell that Ayeka had been burning herself out. It didn't do him much good.

His mind kept returning to the fact that his mother had done the same to herself for him. To make matters worse in that regard, they had gone back in time to save _her_ from Caine, not force her to burn out fighting him. Now another Jurai woman he cared about had burned herself out. It wasn't as bad a case this time, or at least that was the way it seemed, but it didn't change the fact that it had happened.

Now he had lost Ryoko, and that was the problem. He felt selfish for thinking it, perhaps some part of him had wanted to be the one doing the breaking up. At least that is what he told himself. He tried to convince himself that he only seemed to be interested in Ryoko now because she was suddenly forbidden fruit, and that was the only reason. It all still came down to the fact that he had lost Ryoko. She wouldn't talk to him, wouldn't even stay long in the same room with him.

It wouldn't have been so difficult if Ryoko had reacted in the way he would have expected. A Ryoko dancing over the premature grave of a Jurai princess would have been easy to ignore. She would have been even easier to tell off. This train of thought didn't help his general feeling out much. Now he felt guilty about wishing that Ryoko cared less about Ayeka than she did. Wishing, basically, that Ryoko was actually as evil as people had portrayed her when everybody first arrived.

He had been on several dates with Ayeka in the recent past, but they hadn't been the pleasant experiences he was hoping for. Tenchi had hoped that at some point that they would have become less matters of responsibility and more like real social outings. Unfortunately the transition hadn't yet occurred. Oh the movies and activities cheered them up for a brief time, but the image of Ryoko's scowling face always intruded into his thoughts.

He didn't know for sure, but he thought Ayeka had noticed his distraction. She certainly seemed less enthusiastic than she had originally. That was something else praying on his mind. He had felt guilty and confused about stringing along both Ryoko and Ayeka. Now that he had only one choice he still felt guilty and confused. He paused in his walk and sighed resignedly.

"Why can't I have a normal life?" he asked the air, before continuing walking along.

Masaki house

"It has really become quite boring around here," Ayeka declared to the surprise of Ryoko, Sasami and Washu.

"Well, I can try to come up with a galactic threat," Washu answered snidely. "But it will take some time."

"I wasn't thinking of anything so drastic," Ayeka told her. "Perhaps a communal outing to the local cinema."

"If you want to go to a movie, I'm sure _Tenchi_ will take you," Ryoko suggested. Ayeka had yet to understand why Ryoko didn't seem to be upset with her at all, just Tenchi.

"Well, why don't we all go to a movie?" Sasami asked, excitedly. "It sounds like fun! Do you think Miho-Kiyo can come too?"

"Perhaps, they do have busy schedules, Sasami," Ayeka reminded her. "But it wouldn't hurt to make a call."

"Thanks, but I think I'll stay here," Ryoko said, lying back down on the couch.

"Oh come on, Ryoko," Sasami half-whined. "If we're all going to go you should come too. Please?" Ryoko tried to ignore the pleading child, but only managed to do so for about a minute.

"All right, I'll go," Ryoko finally said, resulting in a cheerful hop from Sasami.

"Excellent," Ayeka said happily. "I'll call Miho-Kiyo." She walked into the hallway smiling cheerfully and perhaps a little deviously.

"Hey, wait," Washu called. "Do I get any say in this?" Ayeka popped her head around back into the living room.

"Oh Ryoko," she called, still smiling. "Tenchi should be on his way home now, could you go ask him to join us?"

"Me?" Ryoko asked, looking at Ayeka as if she were insane. "Talk to _him_?"

"You can get there quicker than any of us," Ayeka noted practically. "It is the most efficient solution."

"Okay, _Washu_," Ryoko said irritably, before lifting up and teleporting away.

"Hey!" the scientist tried again to get somebody's attention. "What's everybody picking on me for?" She followed Ayeka back into the hallway, where Ayeka was making her call.

Miho-Kiyo place.

"Hello?" Mihoshi said picking up the phone.

"Mihoshi?" Ayeka's voice said on the other end of the line. "I was wondering perhaps if you, Kiyone and the rest would like to join us for a movie?"

"Just a moment let me check?" Mihoshi turned to where Kiyone was doing their budgeting. "Kiyone, Ayeka wants to know if we can join them in going to a movie tonight." Kiyone frazzled expression turned to one of confusion as she looked up from the bills and checkbook.

"Give me the phone," Kiyone said. Mihoshi cheerfully handed the receiver to her teal-haired partner. "Ayeka?"

"Oh, Captain Makibi," the voice on the other end said.

"Definitely Ayeka," Kiyone thought.

"Are you and yours free from work tonight?" Ayeka asked politely.

"Didn't we talk about this already?" Kiyone asked. "I'm just waiting for Rikyu before leaving."

"Oh good, then you can come?"

"Of course I can come," Kiyone said. "Have you thought of a movie yet?"

"Oh, I was thinking about that new American film," Ayeka said. "It appears to be a somewhat decent historical fiction piece. I'm not certain what period of the galaxy's history it's from, but I never did care much for history."

"Are you talking about The Phantom Menace?" Kiyone asked.

"Oh yes, that's the one," Ayeka noted.

"You're trying to make this look like a spontaneous decision, aren't you?"

"Then we'll see you in an hour or so?"

"What's going on here Ayeka?"

"I have to go, I sent Ryoko after Tenchi, and they should be back soon." Kiyone blinked, pulled the receiver away from her head and looked at it like she didn't know what it was for. She slowly returned the item to her ear.

"Uh, okay, we'll see you soon." The phone on the other end of the line clicked back down. Kiyone then hung-up the phone and began to try and make sense of that conversation. "It can't be what I think it is."

Masaki Residence

"Okay, Princess" Washu said, accusingly. "What's going on here?"

"Isn't it obvious, Washu-Chan?" Ayeka asked. "We're all going out to a movie."

"And the point of sending Ryoko to get Tenchi is?"

"To inform Lord Tenchi of our plans and suggest that he accompany us," Ayeka answered as if that should be obvious.

"And you're not doing this because Ryoko will stomp all over him?"

"Yeah, Ayeka," Sasami added. "Ryoko has been really mean to Tenchi since you got back." Sasami sounded confused about that, but she thought that it perhaps had something to do with how much time her onesan had been spending with Tenchi.

"I am quite certain that it will all be fine," Ayeka asserted.

"One more thing," Washu put in.

"What is it?" Ayeka's pleasant attitude vanished.

"Were you talking about the Phantom Menace?"

"Yes," Ayeka said. "Why do you ask?"

"It's not exactly what you would call historical fiction."

"Really? How odd."

The stairs up to the Masaki house

It was a scene he was used to, Ryoko just popping into existence next to him. For a moment his mood brightened, but it didn't last. Ryoko's new dismissive attitude was still in full force. She wasn't even floating, she was standing off to the side, arms crossed. She looked as if she were on a displeasing errand.

"What do you want Ryoko?" he asked, irritably.

"Ayeka wants us all to go to a movie tonight," she told him.

"So why are _you _telling this to me?" Tenchi asked. "You haven't spoken more than two words together to me since.....since the battle." Ryoko narrowed her eyes.

"Ayeka sent me," Ryoko told him. "So let's get this over with." The pirate teleported away with the last word. Tenchi shrugged and continued climbing up the stairs, he was in the house within two minutes.

"So what movie are we seeing?" Tenchi asked, he avoided looking to Ryoko's position on the couch in the living room. Ayeka turned to him smiling, and seeming vaguely disappointed somehow.

"We're going to see The Phantom Menace!!" Sasami shouted excitedly. Tenchi blinked, Ryoko sat up and looked into the hallway.

"Yes," Washu called from somewhere. "We're just waiting for the Miho-Kiyo group to get here."

"And this was _Ayeka's_ choice?" Tenchi and Ryoko asked simultaneously. Ryoko glared at him and lay back down.

Miho-Kiyo place

"So any word on what movie we're seeing?" Rikyu asked as he appeared in the mirror standing behind Kiyone. The detective jumped, surprised by the teleport.

"Gah! You and your mother!" she gasped, catching her breath. "Don't either of you ever use a door?"

"Well, I haven't quite got the phasing thing down yet," he said, smiling. "So this works better, besides in moment there'll be Mihoshi, my mother, Ayeka, Tenchi and everybody else. Right now it's just us." He encircled his arms around her waste and leaned forward. Kiyone smiled and formed her own ring around his neck.

"So it is," Kiyone agreed, then she decided to tease him a little. "And just how did you know I would be here or that I wouldn't be...indisposed?"

"I have no idea," he answered, kissing her lightly on the lips. "And I don't care."

"A very logical explanation," she responded with her own little kiss. Things were progressing from there when someone knocked on the door.

"Kiiii-yooo-neeee?" Mihoshi whined. "Are you done yet?"

"Well, so much for _that_," Rikyu laughed quietly.

"Perhaps we should spare her this for a little while more," Kiyone suggested, Rikyu nodded smiling and teleported to the living room. "Coming right out Mihoshi." Kiyone opened the door and Mihoshi rushed in behind her.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you Kiyone," was all the blonde said before unceremoniously closing the door on an amused Kiyone.

"Ah, Captain Makibi," Rakkan said as Kiyone appeared in the large open room. 

The room was sparsely furnished, with items scavenged from the Yagami's cargo bay. Fortunately, most of the furniture had been in her and Mihoshi's apartment for the battle so it had survived. It was a rather bizarre collection. There were the old Masaki couches, the simple wooden table from their beach planet snack shop. A few chairs from that had missed the Mihoshi explosion in the bar. Added to that stuff that Ayeka or Ryoko had bought on impulse, or Mihoshi had picked up from the ruins. It wasn't anywhere near a unified interior style.

"Lord Rikyu has arrived," the Akuneko warrior finished. Kiyone glanced over at the red-haired Akuneko and smiled. Rikyu waved with an impish smile.

"I see," Kiyone responded. "Mihoshi won't be much longer, either."

"So what movie are we seeing?" Rikyu asked.

"According to Ayeka," Kiyone suggested. "The Phantom Menace, but I also thought she said something about sending Ryoko to find Tenchi, so I might have heard wrong."

"Oh did that work out?" Karya asked. Kiyone turned and looked at the woman as if she had just found the last piece of a puzzle.

"You know something we don't," Kiyone stated. Karya began to sweat as all attention focused on her.

"Uhh....?"

Theater

They reached the theater early, actually it was later than Ayeka had intended, but Rikyu and Tenchi had convinced them that it would be next to impossible to get enough seats if they came in close to start time. So the entire crew ended up sitting around the theater lobby for an hour, eliciting a large number of stares, especially the three Akuneko. 

Sasami and Mihoshi were busy playing video games, the blonde had collected small number of predominantly male watchers. Rakkan was watching the various strangers with an almost paranoid fervor. The Akuneko warrior was decidedly uncomfortable what with Kiyone and five nobles to keep an eye on. Rikyu and Kiyone were sitting together, mostly just relaxing, but at least partially praying that Mihoshi didn't do anything they'd have to clean up. Karya was sitting a little ways from Kiyone looking rather nervous. Ayeka was sitting with Tenchi across from Kiyone and Rikyu. Ryoko floating off to the side, trying not to look like she was enjoying herself. As for Washu, she had the unenviable position of being officially Sasami and Mihoshi's babysitter.

When they announced that seating would begin soon the Akuneko easily secured the head of the line for their group.

"Hey, that's not fair," somebody shouted.

"Akane-San?" Ayeka asked as she looked the party just behind the Tenchi crew.

"Ayeka? What are you doing here?" Ayeka looked back and saw Akane, Ukyou, and their boyfriends.

"Hey, it's that girl from before!" Ranma declared.

"Onesan, do you know these people?"

"Guys, they're opening the theatre, can we talk later?" Ryoko noted. It didn't take much more than that, and soon they were all seated. As the lights lowered Karya turned towards Ryoko sitting next to her.

"Excuse me, Lady Shinku," Ryoko crimped her neck at the mention of the title and turned to face Karya. "Would you mind switching seats with me?"

"Sure, no problem," the pirate floated up and let the Jurai woman take her original seat. She then set herself down. At virtually the same time, Ayeka, originally next to Karya, turned to Tenchi.

"Excuse me, Lord Tenchi," she started. "I'd like to sit next to my sister, could we switch seats, please?"

"Of course, Ayeka," he stood up and let Ayeka over before sitting down himself. He and Ryoko sat down at virtually the same time. The space pirate glared at Tenchi as she noticed who she was sitting next to. Tenchi noticed as well and glanced guiltily away.

"Karya, I chan*.." Ryoko started

"Shhh, the movie's starting!!" someone shouted. Ryoko stopped talking and sat back in her chair. She reasoned that it was too late now, she'd just have to deal with it. Then the movie started and she willfully forgot the situation.

The Tenchi crew couldn't help but shift a little as the movie progressed. They kept reaching scenes that reminded them of the whole Kagato mess, especially that last sneak into the palace using a battle as distraction. Ryoko glanced at Tenchi as she recalled them standing in the Yagami corridors. Ryoko trying to convince Tenchi not to go and get himself killed, while also hiding the fact that she was slowly bleeding to death.

"...I'd love to go on a trip with you..." Ryoko's eyes softened for a moment before returning to the screen. Just missing that motion, Tenchi turned to glance at her with his own memories from just after his return to Earth.

"If you wait awhile, the carnival always comes back, Tenchi," Ryoko's voice serene as they just stood in the woods, holding each other. Then he, also, turned back to watch the screen.

When the movie ended the Masaki group quietly stood up and walked/teleported/ flew to the side and let the theater clear out before starting to leave themselves. As the other moviegoers filtered out the majority of the Tenchi group just stood quietly and reminisced. Ryoko especially seemed confused, glancing towards Ayeka or Tenchi several times.

"Well, the path is clear," Washu noted. "Perhaps we should get going."

"Yeah, catch you guys at home," Ryoko said, glancing at Tenchi and then at Ayeka before vanishing away.

"If you don't mind," Tenchi suggested. "I'm going to head off by myself also, maybe get something to eat."

"Oh its no problem at all, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka responded. "Well shall the rest of us go?"

"See you later, Tenchi," Sasami waved. Most of the group walked on ahead leaving Tenchi meandering behind. Kiyone managed to catch Ayeka a little behind the rest though.

"_You _are playing _matchmaker_, with Tenchi and_ Ryoko?" _Kiyone asked, half in disbelief.

"I don't have any idea of what you mean," Ayeka denied, then she smiled a small proper smile. "But it's working." Kiyone looked at her as if she had turned green and then walked on.

Return of the Akuneko contents page 


	17. No Need for Arguement

No Need for Argument

Outside the Theatre

"Wow, that was fun," Mihoshi declared as they all left the theatre. "We should do this again sometime."

"That is an exceptional idea," Ayeka agreed, then under her breath added. "Especially considering the source."

"It was fun," Kiyone agreed, then glanced at Ayeka. "And educational, but we should be getting home. We have the early shift tomorrow." Mihoshi looked at Kiyone and slumped with a little sadness.

"Okay, Kiyone," Mihoshi answered glumly.

"Oh, I thought you were going to eat dinner with us," Sasami noted. Mihoshi turned to look at Kiyone with big pleading eyes.

"Please, Kiyone?" Sasami echoed the question.

"Please, Kiyone, I was going to cook a special meal."

"If it wouldn't be too much trouble," Ayeka asked quietly.

"You know," Rikyu started. "I've heard a lot about Sasami's cooking."

"Is it normal for Jurai royalty to do the daily chores?" Rakkan asked Karya.

"No," Karya answered. "But it certainly would be an insult to refuse such an offer." By this point Kiyone had her face in her hand and was resignedly shaking her head back and forth.

"Okay, we'll have dinner at the Masaki's," Kiyone gave in. She didn't speak the rest of the thought. "Probably a good idea to follow you anyway, with Ryoko and Tenchi not around."

"Yippee!" Mihoshi and Sasami yelled together, and they began bouncing up the street towards the edge of town and the Masaki shrine beyond.

"Hey you two!" Kiyone shouted. "Wait for the rest of us."

"Sasami get back here this instant!" Ayeka added her own reprimand.

Across from the theatre someone else was interested in the group as he performed the last checks on his rifle. He was dressed in functional black clothing and soon was scanning the street through his scope.

"I don't know what the big deal about these girls is," he said. "This will be the easiest million I ever made." He picked the first target, traced along her path and fired.

"Ooo, what I cute toy," Mihoshi stopped dead in her tracks to look at a giant stuffed cat bearing a resemblance to the one that had been the cause of the toy shop debacle. There was a loud cracking sound and a small hole appeared in the shop window where Mihoshi would have been. Everybody turned around to see what Mihoshi had done now.

"Mi*" Kiyone was about to yell until she saw the bullet hole. "Rikyu!"

"What was that?" Ayeka demanded. Sasami cried for Tenchi and Ryoko, Washu seemed step into a fold in space. Rakkan and Karya placed themselves between the force wall and everybody else. Mihoshi kept looking at the toy.

"Already done," Kiyone turned around as a second bullet sparked off of the force wall he had raised. This time they all saw the spark of flame as the sniper fired.

"What the hell?" the sniper yelled. He targeted the blonde again, cycling off of the purple-haired girl in the regal dress. He fired again.

"Alive, got it?" Kiyone asked as the third bullet ricocheted into the air.

"Yes," Rakkan answered, and he teleported away. He appeared behind the sniper mere moments later. The man heard the teleport and whirled in time to see the Akuneko punching downward. He rose the rifle up to block the punch, but the Akuneko tore through the thin metal device and smashed into the man's head. Then picked the man up and teleported back down to the street.

"What is going on Kiyone-San," Ayeka demanded.

"Don't drop the wall yet," Kiyone said, unnecessarily as the police began to arrive. She unclipped the communication earring again and called down the Yagami. "Everybody but Rikyu and I on board." 

"Kiyone, can I have this-" Mihoshi was saying as the Yagami processed the information and soon Kiyone and Rikyu were alone on the street.

"This is the Tokyo police special units," a voice called out over the loudspeaker. "Put down your weapons and release your hostage." Kiyone sighed, she had always wondered how long it would take for the Earth authorities to show up at one of their little battles. Until now the space shuttle incident was the only such instance.

"Captain Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police," she called back. "This incident falls under my Jurisdiction."

"Galaxy Police?" the loud speaker returned. "What kind of bull is that?"

"Think we're going to have any trouble?" Rikyu asked.

"Nothing we can't handle," Kiyone said, she looked up to where the Yagami hovered above the lights in the night sky. "Hmm, just had an idea. Yagami bring aboard myself, Rikyu and whoever is manning that loudspeaker." The scene around them flickered and suddenly they were in the Yagami's cargo bay with a surprised police officer decked out in body armor. He didn't lose anytime aiming his weapon at her though.

"Okay, miss, what's going on here?" he asked.

"Easy, chief," Rikyu said, holding his hands out. "Trust me, you don't want to go firing off anything on this ship." Kiyone reached up to her shirt pocket, slowly, and withdrew her pen.

"I think Washu might have even improved on everything since the Akuneko battle," Kiyone mentioned. She held her pen out in front of her calmly.

"Space ship, right," the cop said. "We have magicians, martial artists, demons, monsters and but I'm not going to buy little green men. And what do you want me to do with that, sign a receipt?" Kiyone pushed the top of the pen and unscrolled her identification. "Neat trick, I have something like it."

"Okay, I give up," Kiyone said, throwing her arms up as if in resignation. As she did the small round form of her yo-yo flew from her hand and knocked the cops weapon away. "Now, I'm Captain Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police. Somebody just tried to kill my partner, I believe that puts the assailant under my jurisdiction."

"By the way," Rikyu added. "Most of us aren't little, and none of us are green."

"Captain," Kiyone turned to see Karya standing in the doorway. "The prisoner is secure."

"Good," Kiyone started to turn back to the policeman, then stopped and looked back to Karya. "You remembered to turn the brig off first didn't you?" Karya bit her lip and stared at the ceiling, hands crossed behind her back. "Nevermind," she turned back to face the Tokyo policeman. "Now excuse me, officer..."

"Lieutenant," the man corrected. He was annoyed, but definitely aware that he was out of his league here.

"Lieutenant," Kiyone said. "I'm going to put you back down and then check on the rest of my friends. Whoever that is will be looking at a nice long sentence in a prison somewhere."

"Don't have much choice, do I," he said.

"Not really, no," Kiyone said. "Oh and Lieutenant, careful what you ask for. This is supposed to be a career ending nothing post, but I keep ending up near the center of galaxy threatening crises."

"Uh huh," the man said in confusion just before the Yagami's cargo bay flickered out of his view.

"I doubt our friend's in a condition to talk," Karya blushed at Kiyone's statement. "So let's track down Tenchi and Ryoko."

Back outside the theatre

Tenchi walked outside and saw the mass of police outside, but didn't see anybody he knew so decided to ignore it. He walked around the police block and continued on toward the Masaki shrine. He was feeling completely hopeless, and hoping to speak with Grandfather. Things had been simple before Ryoko and Mihoshi crashed down. Train, go to school, return home, chores, train, sleep. Since then, however, it had been one surprise after another. Recently the surprises had been more unpleasant than pleasant.

He liked Ayeka, especially when she let the royal attitude slip a little, but he was finding that she didn't like her as much as she might want. His flashback to how relieved he had been when she turned up alive after the Kagato thing had added to that feeling. He was seeing Ayeka and thinking about Ryoko, who didn't seem to care whether he existed or not these days. Of course, duty would have him paired with Ayeka, for many reasons, but the prospect did not appeal to him. Then again, that aspect of duty might have been what was bothering him to begin with. Maybe he didn't want to feel forced into things, he didn't want to feel that it was only duty bringing them together.

This wasn't the same as when he had thought Ryoko was lying dead in some solar system somewhere. It was worse she was there, right where he could see her, but couldn't get any closer. He would have suspected her of faking it just to make him more interested, but Ryoko's cons weren't really all that skillfully performed. If this had been a con she would have gone ridiculously overboard. As much as Ryoko liked to think of herself as a master rogue, she was not very good at hiding her feelings

When it came down to it, none of the women could elicit near as much of a reaction as Ryoko could. Like everybody else, he treated Sasami like an adorable younger sister. Mihoshi evoked a little in the way of fear and pity. What he shared with Kiyone was a sense of dealing with other people's messes, she had Mihoshi, and he had Ryoko. As for Washu, well everybody responded strongly to Washu, terror seemed to be the common factor. Well, except Kiyone, who collaborated quite often with the diminutive scientist, disturbingly so. Ayeka had a similar sense of duty as his, and she, more even than Yosho or Sasami, represented a connection to his Jurai heritage.

Now Ryoko, Ryoko exasperated him. She was one of the most unconditionally loyal people he had ever met. She was capable of incredible amounts of self-sacrifice, as she had shown at least twice now. On the other hand she was also one of the most irresponsible people there was. She always had to prove how fun and carefree she was, and in the process she always managed to leave behind a terrible mess. She tended to act on impulse without considering the consequences, like robbing the bank of Jurai because she had spent all their food money. Or else she'd push to far in an effort to prove herself, like with Washu's cave.

Tenchi was still trying to rationalize his emotions when the street flickered into the Yagami's cargo bay. He stared about in surprise for a moment before shrugging.

"Okay," Tenchi said, speaking to the air. "What happened now?"

Masaki Shrine

"So, Ryoko," Yosho paused as he sipped from his teacup. "The last time you came to me, it was a request for training, which you've been lax in recently, I might add."

"I've had a lot on my mind," Ryoko answered, irritably. Yosho laughed quietly, Ryoko wouldn't be Ryoko if she didn't maintain a disrespectful veneer.

"Beautiful night isn't it," Yosho noted.

"Yeah, it is," Ryoko agreed, turning to look outside. She always liked looking into the night sky, it reminded her of the freedom she felt travelling through space. Then a breeze blew through the open doors of the shrine, and she shivered. "But it's getting colder outside."

"You don't like the cold, do you?" Yosho asked.

"That's no secret," Ryoko said, irritably.

"Your son doesn't seem to share the same problem," he added, taking another sip of the tea. He gestured for Ryoko to help herself to the tea. She did, picking the cup up respectfully and with the proper forms. This snapped the crass image she desperately maintained. The tea was good, not the masterful mixture Sasami made, but it was good.

"He's lived here his entire life," Ryoko waved it off. "I've had two thousand years of climate control."

"Ayeka seems to be doing fine," Yosho noted. "Sasami certainly enjoys the winter, I doubt they've had less luxury than you have."

"I don't know why I don't like the cold, okay?" Ryoko snapped. She hadn't noticed yet that she hadn't even asked Yosho her question. He had started this conversation before she could say anything. "I just don't."

"It is a very displeasing sensation," Yosho agreed. "It calls to mind solitude."

"Yeah," Ryoko shivered. "Like everybody's left you behind."

"It's no one's fault but your own," Yosho finally said.

"I don't want to see Tenchi," Ryoko snapped angrily, forgetting why she had come in the first place. Yosho smiled.

"Who was talking about Tenchi?" the old Jurai asked. "I was talking about being cold. It's no one's fault but our own when we're cold in this time of modern miracles." Yosho spoke the last with a touch of dry sarcasm.

"Oh," Ryoko blushed a little in embarrassment and took another sip of tea.

"I assume you still blame yourself for Ayeka's choice?" Ryoko eyes snapped wide. "It's neither your or Tenchi's fault. There is no way to tell that someone is burning out, unless you are monitoring their vitals."

"She was there because Tenchi was there," Ryoko accused. "It _is_ his fault!"

"That's you trying to remove yourself from her path. You're thinking she was there because you would be there," Yosho countered. "Because she didn't trust Tenchi around you."

"So, it's my fault then?" Ryoko yelled, standing up and dashing her cup away. "Defending your grandson? Everything that goes wrong is my fault?"

"Ayeka is responsible for her own decisions," Yosho noted calmly, sipping his tea. "Neither Tenchi nor you could have predicted what she did, and couldn't have stopped her if you had seen it."

"What do you know, old man!" Ryoko was floating out of the building when the scenery flickered into the Yagami's bay. From there it was a short trip for Ryoko to the bridge. "What's going on Kiyone?" She glanced at Tenchi across the small bridge and blushed before scowling and turning back to the teal-haired policewoman. She didn't notice Ayeka smile secretively at the action.

"Somebody took a few pot shots at us outside the theatre," Kiyone answered. "He's in the brig right now."

"Isn't that enough punishment?" Ryoko asked.

"It would probably be a good idea to learn who hired him," Tenchi noted. Ayeka rolled her eyes and whispered under her breath so that only she heard, "Forgive me Lord Tenchi, but you are an idiot."

"What was that?" Ryoko snapped. "I make a joke and you accuse me of being stupid!"

"Like playing with one of Washu's inventions was an intelligent choice!" Tenchi countered.

"Guys," Kiyone started, trying to catch their attention. Rikyu was whispering "_Bad_ idea," just behind her.

"Are you STILL annoyed with that? We all got back alive didn't we?"

"Captain," Karya said quietly. "Perhaps we should stay out of the way."

"We spent, I don't how many months, in alternate worlds!!"

"I concur," Rakkan said.

"I gave up my perfect world to get us back!"

"Ryy-ooo-kooo! Tennnchiii! You're hurting my ea-er-er-er-ers!" Mihoshi whined.

"Oh _you_ would think that world was perfect!"

"You idiots are ruining everything," Ayeka complained quietly.

"What was wrong with it? It had action, adventure, _romance_."

"Hey where is Washu-San?" Sasami asked, breaking away from the tennis viewer headshake they were all adapting.

"It was an amoral, criminal....what do you mean 'Where is Washu-San'?"

"She was with you guys wasn't she?" Ryoko added, also forgetting the fight.

"Oops." Kiyone laughed, nervously.

Outside the Theatre

"Hey!" the few people around the spot of speaking air jumped. "Is it safe to come out yet?"

"AHHH!!! IT'S A GHOST!!!" The pedestrians ran screaming in random directions. A head popped out of a fold in the air, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"Hey, where'd everybody go?"

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	18. No Need for Lawyers

No Need for Lawyers

The Yagami bridge

It hadn't taken long for them to find an irate Washu floating in a force field bubble on her way to the Masaki shrine. After that Kiyone, now certain that everybody was safe, attempted to drop everyone off at the Masaki shrine. This was a not so successful action.

"I'm staying," Ryoko declared. "Nothing better to do anyway." Kiyone didn't know what Ryoko thought she was going to do, but she had her guess.

"I don't...."

"And I think I will be staying as well," Ayeka interrupted her. "I would like to know what exactly this man was shooting at his for."

"Princess..."

"I'd guess I'd better stay as well," Tenchi responded to Ayeka's statement. Ayeka smiled, Ryoko and Tenchi, still angry, glared icicles at each other.

"There's no need...."

"Captain Makibi," of course Rakkan had to put in something. "I do not think I should leave you alone with that assassin." Rikyu was leaning against a bulkhead trying to keep from laughing.

"I can take...."

"And I think we should speak to Jurai about Earth's general ignorance," Karya noted.

"Perhaps, that would be a good idea," Ayeka noted. Everybody looked to Kiyone expecting her to try objecting again.

"That's actually a good idea," the detective answered the unspoken question. "But I don't...."

"Do you still have that fighting game," Sasami asked, with a bored but slightly embarrassed voice.

"Yes, but...."

"Oh, I want to play too!" Mihoshi piped in. The pair ran off towards the living quarters. "I'll beat you this time, Sasami!" The little girl giggled.

"Not likely," she cheered, everyone had tried, and no one had yet succeeded.

"At least there out of the way," Kiyone grumbled, though it was kind of annoying that Mihoshi was going to be getting out of the work. Then she turned to Washu and Rikyu. "Anything from you two?" The red-haired Akuneko was virtually ready to burst with laughter, when he tried to talk it all came bursting out. This was much to his ladylove's irritation.

"I've been wanting to test something anyway," everyone shifted back and forth and Kiyone hoped for a moment that they would decide to leave, but no such move was made. Washu looked shrugged apologetically, though whether it was to Kiyone or the group she didn't know. She irritably stood up and started for the brig.

The brig

The sniper sat up out from the floor stiffly, trying to remember the sequence of events that had provided him so much pain. He remembered bouncing bullets off thin air and then being smashed by one of his targets who had crossed a street and run up three flights of stairs in under a second. The only thing that kept the man from totally surprising him was the odd sound that had occurred just behind him, something like a rip in the fabric of space.

Now he was here in an empty, futuristic room, with an unsecured doorway. Or at least it looked unsecured. He remembered something like a nightmare where he had been thrown into a room like this and he associated the empty doorway with bright lights and pain. He removed a button from a shirt pocket and tossed it through the doorway, what followed was an impressive display of sound and fury. The button disintegrated, even its ashes were destroyed.

"Where am I?" He asked as the area quieted down around him. He heard the sound of clicking footsteps close by, shortly before he was answered.

"This is my vessel, the Yagami," Kiyone answered as she stepped in front of the force field. The man in front of her was tall for a human with short cropped, dark hair. She couldn't tell if it was black or just a very dark variation of something else. His clothes were more than a little ragged, he had been through the door after all.

"A ship?" the man said. "That explains the high bounty on the blonde and that purple-haired girl so what are you? American?" Kiyone smiled, behind her Rakkan scowled at the human killer.

"I think that I should clear some matters up first," she noted. "I'm placing you under arrest for attempting to murder a Galaxy Police officer."

"Galaxy..." The man started as Kiyone continued undaunted.

"You have the right to remain silent as pertaining matters to your disadvantage."

"...Police?" he looked on the verge of cracking up.

"You have the right to a legal representative, if you cannot afford one, one will be provided for you." The assassin began chortling hysterically.

"Galaxy Police. That's a good one."

"Do you understand these rights as I have explained them to you?"

"Oh yes," the assassin laughed. "I understand these rights, so who are you really?" A communication holograph appeared next to Kiyone, cutting off the assassin's glee a little. 

"Captain," Karya sat on the other side of the screen, whispering. "Could you please hurry, it is becoming frightfully tense up here."

"Well, bear with it for a little longer," Kiyone suggested. "But right now I'd like to ask our friend some questions."

"Yes, Captain," Karya whispered quietly, glancing nervously off screen. The holograph vanished.

"About that lawyer," the assassin noted, a little afraid now.

Yagami Bridge

"Its a little cold in here," Ryoko complained.

"It's fine Ryoko," Tenchi responded.

"My fingers are turning blue."

"Lord Tenchi, Lady Shinku," Ayeka snapped, patience gone after several minutes of these little debates. "Really, you two are acting quite childish. I'd expect that from Ryoko, but really."

"You didn't waste much time after Ryoko stopped talking to me," Tenchi observed. For once Ayeka didn't respond angrily, she'd already come to that conclusion herself. She was surprised that Tenchi would bring it up.

"Tenchi," Ryoko gasped. "Ayeka, you know he's just mad at me. He doesn't mean anything."

"Oh, but he's perfectly correct," Ayeka admitted. Everybody stared at her as if had just gone insane. "Out of curiosity, you didn't just spend time with me out of guilt, did you?"

"I....like you alright," Tenchi muttered. "And I..._hoped_...that something else would happen, but...."

"Yes, I understand the feeling," Ayeka noted. "I thought there already was..._something_."

"This is crazy," Ryoko snapped. "She loves you and you love her."

"Actually, Lady Shinku," Karya began. Rikyu flinched as she continued talking and raced for a way to stop what was coming. "Part of Princess Ayeka's purpose tonight was to..."

"...let Tenchi down easy." Karya glanced at him curiously.

"Yes, that is it," Ayeka agreed quickly with the pirate's son. "But apparently there is no need for that. Friends then." Ryoko's jaw was working, but nothing was coming out.

"Yeah, friends," and Ayeka and Tenchi hugged, a rather platonic manner.

"But..." Ryoko started. "You...in the battle..."

"And that's another subject," Ayeka noted. "I am not this fragile little glass figurine, you know. How would you like being treated like a small child all the time."

"She's only worried about you, Ayeka," Tenchi put in.

"Hey don't _you_ defend me!"

"When do you think La...I mean Captain Kiyone will return, Lord Rikyu?"

"Not for a while I think," Rikyu noted, missing the Jurai's near slip. "Unfortunately." The two continued watching the three-way argument build from there.

Yagami Brig

"If you wish it," Kiyone opened another holograph, a bored looking nekojin appeared on the other side.

"Galaxy Police legal section," the man yawned. "What do you need?"

"I have a prisoner who has requested a lawyer," Kiyone informed the man, he revealed a mild amount of surprise. He then began shuffling his papers.

"Okay, what hospital is he in," the Terran assassin's jaw dropped at the assumption of hospitalization.

"Well, he's in my brig," Kiyone explained. "Minor burns, extensive bruising, maybe a concussion."

"Is that all?" the nekojin asked. "Didn't this prisoner even try to put up a fight?"

"He's an Earth native, I think somebody paid him to assassinate my partner and Princess Ayeka."

"Oh a primitive," the nekojin noted. "That explains it then, well Sol system is quite a ways from where we are now. Would your prisoner accept a holograph conference?"

"Do you mind?" Kiyone asked. "He wants to know if we can run this with your lawyer appearing by holograph, it might be weeks otherwise."

"And you can't do anything to me in the meantime, right?" the assassin smiled.

"Me? Nope, definitely not," the assassin looked smug, very briefly. "But Rakkan here is an Akuneko noble not connected to the GP at all. Ayeka and Tenchi are from the Royal family of Jurai, they could legally do whatever they want to you. Washu might decide you'd make an excellent guinea pig, and I couldn't do anything to stop her if she decided that. Ryoko is a powerful space pirate, and she's recently been very, VERY protective of Ayeka. Ayeka is the purple-haired girl, by the way. Finally, sometime in those weeks you might encounter one of my partner's accidents, which rival natural disasters for fury."

"I think I'll take the holograph lawyer."

"Okay, he'll accept it," Kiyone informed the sweating nekojin. "I'm sending the file over to you now."

"Thank you, it shouldn't be more than an hour," the nekojin yawned before shutting down the communication.

"Well, I'll see you when they contact me again," Kiyone smiled.

"Hey, what is the average sentence for attempted murder?"

"One moment," Kiyone opened a holograph to the bridge and popped it around a few moments, until she found Ryoko. "Ryoko, what did you go to jail for exactly?"

"Fraud. Why do you want to know," Ryoko asked frostily.

"And how long was the sentence?" Kiyone glanced at the assassin.

"Well the sentence was about a thousand, but I made parole at seven hundred."

"Okay, so you got off a year early," the assassin yelled from off screen. "What does that have to do with the average sentence for attempted murder."

"Oh, I get it now," Ryoko disappeared from the screen and appeared in front of the brig. The assassin's eyes goggled, but at least he knew how that "Rakkan" had gotten behind him so fast. "Listen asshole, I was in for seven hundred _years_, not _days_."

"For fraud?" the assassin sounded disbelieving. "So how old are you granny?"

"I'm not a grandmother yet," Ryoko laughed. Then she turned to Kiyone, eyebrow upraised. "Am I?" Kiyone blushed.

"No, why would you be?" Kiyone quickly answered. "If you'll excuse me, we really shouldn't be talking without your lawyer." Kiyone smiled as she walked down the corridor. Ryoko followed, floating cross-legged down the corridors alongside the detective. Rakkan sat down in mid-air and watched the assassin in the brig.

"Is that all you wanted?" Ryoko asked.

"I believe it will make him think a little, don't you?" Kiyone responded. "The average life expectancy around here is only seventy-five after all."

"Well, I guess that's true," Ryoko noted. "Why are you breaking off by the way?"

"Oh, he asked for a lawyer," Kiyone answered. "Shouldn't be more than an hour. He'll sit there in the meantime with Rakkan glaring at him."

"Letting him stew? I always hate that." Ryoko smiled.

"What's going on at the bridge anyway?" Kiyone asked.

"Tenchi and Ayeka broke up," Ryoko said, neglecting to inflect the words.

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	19. No Need for Conspiracies

No Need for Conspiracy 

(to those Amtgarders out there, the resemblance of any characters to Sir Sir Sir Sir Aramithras is completely intentional.)

Office in a Skyskraper

"Your man didn't do his job," the cloaked man said. "My master was hoping for a bloodier message."

"You did not give us all the information," the man responded with a slight Italian accent. He didn't like this Jedi wannabe, but he had paid for their services in gold bars. "Now we have to find our operative and dispose of him as well."

"You won't find him," the cloaked man laughed, then turned serious. "He was carrying the coin, was he not?" The suit waved off that question.

"You don't seem to understand who we are," the man told him with a silky threatening voice. "We could find and take anyone that lives on this world."

"Exactly my point, he was carrying the coin, correct?" the cloaked man was insistent now.

"He was a professional, of course he had the coin."

"Good, then our business is concluded," the man stood up from the recliner and began walking out of the office. "If I were you I would not make any further moves on the targets, my master would not appreciate that." The suit snapped and another man in a dark suit blocked the man's passage out with a pistol. The cloaked man smiled, he flickered out of view with a ripping sound as the gunman fired. The bullet struck the gunman's boss, passing through his arm and out the window, as the cloaked man reappeared behind him.

"Your job is _done_," the cloaked man emphasized the statement with deadly clarity. "But since you don't seem to realize that." The cloaked man tossed a small sphere at the suit as he vanished again. Mere moments later the top five floors of the skyskraper exploded.

The Yagami Brig

"Well, we've identified your client, Mister...A.R.A Mithras" Kiyone told the lawyer from across the screen. The assassin himself was dismayed at the youthful appearance of his court appointed attorney. "The locals have quite a file on him, excuse me, but are you drinking wine out of a box?" The lawyer on the screen had a large, bright red nose poking out of a spherical mass of hair that concealed any other facial feature.

"ITS A CARDBOARD CARAFE!!!" the assassin and Kiyone both paused to look at him, then they went back to what they had been doing. 

"Wait, wait," the lawyer insisted. Kiyone looked in wide-eyed embarrassment as the lawyer shuffled papers about.

"Excuse me, can I possibly get another lawyer?"

"I'll have you know that I'm the most experienced attorney in this office," the lawyer was indignant.

"You don't act like you've had many cases," the assassin noted.

"Just how many people from legal survived the Caine incident?" Kiyone asked nervously.

"Umm, I had to do some shopping for my mother." The assassin turned from the inebriated public defender to face Kiyone.

"What do you want to know?" he asked desparately.

"Who hired you?" Kiyone asked.

"Listen you!" the lawyer shouted. "You have to let me defend you, we can't let the dream die just because we've had more major disasters and battles in the last two years than all of the past hundred."

"I don't know who contracted me," the assassin answered ignoring the lawyer. "I work through an agency, an office on the top floor of the Makiko building." Kiyone pulled up a Washu holo-unit and scanned for the indicated building.

"Bad news for you," Kiyone said. "The top five floors of that building were destroyed in some kind of terrorist bombing. Don't you have any clues for me?" The assassin looked shocked as the lawyer began to rant about how the Caine incident was all a plot by the Jurai empire to weaken the true center of civilization in the galaxy.

"Wasn't Caine trying to destroy all the Jurai?" Kiyone put in for a moment.

"You see how far they're willing to go to ruin it all for us!!" Kiyone rolled her eyes away from the odd man faced the assassin again.

"I had this coin I was supposed to leave with the bodies," he reached into his pockets and retrieved a small flat piece of metal with the crest of Jurai imprinted on it.

"You see!! The evil Jurai have corrupted this innocent young man...." Kiyone switched off the brig energy wall and reached out to accept the coin, behind her Rakkan watched everything carefully. Turning it over Kiyone saw a serial number.

"Its a Jurai keydisk," Kiyone noted as she raised the energy wall behind her. She turned to the holo-unit and typed in the serial number. "Thought so, that shipment of hard currency that disappeared a couple of weeks ago." She did a little more checking, accessing the galactic net through Yagami's computers and the holo-unit. "The crew reported a black ship of some kind before all transmission was lost, thanks." She started to leave.

"Wait, what about me?"

"Oh, I'm going to charge you with possession of an unlicensed weapon," Kiyone informed him. "If you plead you might be able to get away with ten years."

"Thanks alot," he grumbled as Kiyone left.

"No problem," Kiyone said non-chalantly as she walked down the corridor. Rakkan glided after her after a few moments glaring at the assassin.

"You damn detectives!" the lawyer was yelling. "You're destroying the Dream with your abuses of power and rand-*" The lawyer's drunken rant was cut off as the holoscreen vanished at an unheard command from Kiyone down the corridor.

The Yagami Living Quarters

"Oh, you beat me again," Mihoshi whined.

"No one can beat me at Spiritblade!" Sasami declared. "So why don't we try another game."

"Yeah, a spacefighter game," Mihoshi insisted. She started scanning through the computer's databanks for more games. She found utilities, reports, databases, and then finally, after a great deal of random pointing and clicking she came to something that resembled a game.

"Hey isn't that Miss Washu?" Sasami asked as the intro screen of the game popped up.

"Yeah, it looks like her doesn't it."

"What's this game called?"

"Semi-Holographic three-dimensional simulation field generator," Mihoshi read. "Look at all the scenarios! Oh, which one should I pick?"

"How about Bandit Swarm?"

"Yeah that sounds fun!"

The Yagami Bridge

"Captain," Karya turned to face Kiyone as she entered the bridge. "We've just crossed the fifth planet's sol-orbital path. Is there something we should know?"

"Less Earth traffic around here," Kiyone noted as she sat down in the pilot's chair.

"Any idea of who hired that man in the brig," Ayeka asked in a slightly annoyed tone.

"I have a suspicion, that it was an Akuneko."

"Rei Kuroi?" Tenchi asked, anxious about facing another dark warrior.

"Nervous, Tenchi?" Ryoko asked viciously. Before Tenchi could rise to the jibe the ships alarms began going wild. Kiyone and Karya both turned to the scanners and controls of the Yagami to see what the problem was.

"We're tracking approximately forty ships of various make and designs," Kiyone noted. "They look like some kind of.....whooaaah!!!!!" Kiyone was cut off as the ship, seemingly on its own began a series of evasive maneuvers. The crew were thrown to the side as the Yagami took an almost instantaneous one-eighty, temporarily shifting and strengthening the gravity field.

"What the hell is going on here?" Ryoko yelled.

"I see one of their ships, Captain!" Karya shouted. "They appear to have a cloaking device of some kind!" A streak of color blazed past the Yagami's forward viewpoint, everyone noticed that they seemed to be looking right through it.

The Yagami Cargo Bay

"What's going on!?!" Washu demanded as she was plastered to the ceiling and then found herself falling again. "Who's driving this thing?" The gravity field shifted again and Washu's fall became a gentle tumble. The pink haired scientist rushed, or tried to rush in the currently low gravity, for a section of exposed circuitry.

"Have to reactivate inertial damper!" she gasped before being tossed across the cargo bay by another gravity shift.

The Yagami Living Quarters

"Washu makes great video games!" Sasami declared cheerfully as she felt the gravity shift with another motion of the computer ship. The computer recognized this as the place from which the ship was being controlled, and while the intensity of the field was fluctuating, the computer did its best to maintain center of gravity at the computer. As a result Sasami and Mihoshi were mostly unaware of the problems everybody else was having.

"Hey Sasami, you're turn is coming up, try and beat that score!"

"Oh just watch me!" Sasami exclaimed excitedly.

The Yagami Bridge

"Its stopped," Kiyone declared as the ship paused. She rushed to the scanners, "No hostiles detected."

"Kiyone, could this be the problem?" Rikyu pointed to a small monitor on the side of the pilot station where the words "reloading simulation" were flashing.

"Simulation?" Rakkan asked, confused. "What does that mean?" Then they were moving again and the ships alarms blared all over again. Fortunately the gravity shifts were not near as severe this time.

"Who's flying this thing!!" Washu demanded over a holoscreen. "Is Mihoshi up there! If I hadn't reactivated the inertial damper during that pause we'd still be flying all over the place."

"The computer is running some sort of simulation," Ayeka informed the scientist, acting mildly miffed. "I assume this might have something to do with what you fiddling with." The ship wasn't maneuvering in the same insane manner anymore, but it was doing a somewhat decent job at avoiding damage from the now obviously holographic ships.

"You think I like being kicked around like a hacky sack?" Everybody looked at each other in confusion.

"What's a hacky sack?" somebody asked.

"Err, never mind, what's this simulation you're talking about?"

"Captain!!" Karya yelled. "We're heading back into the asteroid belt!"

Everybody watched with terror as the Yagami piloted through the asteroid belt at high speed. They didn't care about the number of holo-bandits that blew up in shimmering computer generated explosions. They were concerned with the very real pieces of rock passing to the side of them at high speed. By the time they came out the other side they were all staring in shock out the viewport. Then the last holo-bandit shattered into a last explosive light show. Moments later the sound of Mihoshi and Sasami's voices came to them from the cooridors.

"That was fun Mihoshi!" Sasami declared. "I'll beat you next time, you were only ten seconds ahead of me."

"I don't think so, Sasami," Mihoshi declared proudly. "Guess what, I beat Sasami at a game! Hey what's wrong with you guys?"

"I thought so," Washu muttered from the holoscreen.

"You can't use my computer without supervision anymore," Kiyone declared breathlessly. "Neither of you."

"But Kiyone..." Sasami started.

"I think we have to agree with that," Tenchi noted. Everybody nodded wordlessly.

"Captain, shouldn't we check on the prisoner." Everybody took a moment to think about that and then crinkled their faces in sympathetic pain.

"Err...later..."

Return of the Akuneko contents page


	20. No Need for Apologies

No Need for Apologies

Washu's Lab

"Well," Ayeka asked impatiently. "Do you have any results?" If she was going to suffer the indignity of these tests, the least Washu could do was answer some questions.

"Quite a few actually," Washu said cheerfully. Ayeka blinked.

"Well don't just stand there," Ayeka demanded. "Tell me about them."

"I've been able to isolate at least fifteen separate factors in the Jurai energy field that I had not noticed before," Washu started, Ayeka blinked again. "The structure of the field is exceptionally interesting. Considering the differences between your…"

"Washu-chan…" Ayeka started politely.

"…field now, and your field before. I might be able to refine my Jurai energy generators with this information."

"…Washu?"

"I don't think I'll ever be able to duplicate the same level of complexity that a living being…"

"…Washu…." Ayeka said a little testily.

"….can create in the field. There is a level of evolution and change even in your weakened…."

"…WASHU!!!!!!!" Ayeka shouted.

"Ayeka, you should be avoiding stress as much as possible," the scientist condoned her. "Try to calm down."

"Do you have any information that can help _me_?" Ayeka asked.

"Not as yet." Ayeka restrained herself from attacking the pink-haired scientist. "Have you actually tried channeling power since then?"

"No, why do you ask?" Washu looked grim. "Is that bad."

"It could be," Washu noted. "After an injury it always helps the healing to work on the injured part. Hmm, let's hook you back up to the sensors and try a few more tests."

"If you insist, Washu-chan," Ayeka said wearily. 

The New Miho-Kiyo place

"But do you have to go and leave me here all alone?" Mihoshi whined. 

"Rakkan and Karya are here," she fixed the pair with a glare, they had been difficult to convince of that. Both wanted to accompany Kiyone and Rikyu on the trip. "It's a week there, drop off the prisoner, paperwork, report and then a week back, I won't be gone long. And I'm not going for another few days, so you can stop acting like I'm going vanish every time I leave your sight."

"But I can't last that long without you!" Mihoshi wailed.

"You were here for more than a month before I arrived!" Kiyone countered.

"Oh yeah," Mihoshi said cheerfully. "I guess I'll be find."

"Aaghh!!" Kiyone took a moment after voicing her frustration to calm down. "Good, I guess that's settled then."

"By why do you want to go off with Rikyu anyway?" Kiyone turned a faint shade of red and laughed nervously.

"Well, all he's seen so far is the frontiers," Kiyone explained weakly. "So I'm going to give him a chance to see some of the centers of the galactic civilization."

"It's not because you want some time alone with him?" Kiyone's blush deepened.

"How did you figure that out?" Karya asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Mihoshi asked curiously.

"To normal people perhaps," Rakkan commented quietly.

"Well, whatever," Kiyone said. "You're fine staying here, so as soon as Tenchi and Ryoko get here, I can deal with this other situation and then I'm gone."

"Where are Lord Tenchi and Lady Shiroi?"

"Yosho apparently has them sparring."

Yosho's training ground

Ryoko and Tenchi glared at each other across the sparring ground. They'd vocally clashed once or twice since they'd left the Yagami. Nothing quite so volatile as that first outburst, but still somewhat vicious.

"This should be good practice for you Ryoko," Yosho said from off to the side. "Tenchi has been practicing the Jurai fighting arts all his life."

"There's no way that _he's_ going to beat me," Ryoko insisted. She took her stance rigidly.

"Let's just see about that," Tenchi said.

"Remember, this is just a spar," Yosho said harshly. "And a test of your fighting skills, not your powers."

"I don't need my powers," Ryoko insisted. Tenchi narrowed his eyes.

"In that case, begin!"

Ryoko attacked first, as Tenchi expected. He fell back slowly, concentrating on his defense for the time being. Ryoko's execution was near perfect, but he'd learned the same routine nearly eight years ago. Ryoko stabbed forward with an enraged shout. Tenchi coolly sidestepped, letting Ryoko pass along side and past him. He lay the edge of his bokken against the back of her head lightly.

"Damn it," Ryoko snarled as she felt the slight brush of wood against her skull.

"The first round goes to Tenchi," Yosho declared. "You need to calm down Ryoko, that was a somewhat predictable exchange."

"Don't worry about me," Ryoko grunted as she faced off against Tenchi before. The second pass turned out much like the first. A lot like the first.

"Ryoko's better than this, much better" Tenchi thought to himself. "What's she doing?" Looking to his Grandfather he saw that Yosho was also confused. Ryoko generally depended on her powers in battle, but she had to have some experience in melee over the last couple thousand years.

"Shall we try again Ryoko?" Yosho asked. Ryoko grumbled wordlessly and prepared for a third round. Tenchi watched her with some concern this time, and the third pass began.

Ryoko came in hard again, almost flawlessly, but still following one of the practice routines stroke for stroke. She had to know that the counter would be obvious. He dodged to the side and out of her reach. Then he stood and watched her.

"What's the matter Tenchi, pressing a little to hard?" Ryoko asked.

"Are you okay, Ryoko?" Tenchi asked.

"What are you talking about Tenchi, now are we going to fight here?"

"Good question," Yosho interrupted. "Considering you've thrown every round."

"Yeah, I'd almost say you want to lose," Tenchi was confused. He had thought Ryoko was angry with him, but wouldn't that make her eager to win rather than lose.

"Oh forget it, this was stupid anyway," Ryoko snapped and teleported away.

"Ryoko wait!" Tenchi shouted. "Damn it, what's the matter with her?"

"You haven't been paying much attention, have you Tenchi?" Yosho asked.

"What do you mean?" 

"She hasn't been around as much recently, has she?" Now that Tenchi thought about, the only times Ryoko showed up at the house was for the soap operas and meals. And she'd been drunk more often as well. He'd been too busy worrying about himself to notice anything wrong with her.

"I'm going to go talk to her." Yosho nodded, and smiled as his grandson walked away. He felt a little silly, meddling in their lives, but it needed to be done.

Washu's Cave

Ryoko snatched one of the remaining bottles that actually contained sake, she was almost through her stock, again. She had almost used up her small savings from the maid job, perhaps it was time to collect some more money. Perhaps time to go back to what she was best at. After all, Ayeka had said it several times herself, she wasn't good for anything but blowing stuff up.

"Yeah, just one more drink and I'll collect Ryo-Ohki and be gone," Ryoko said.

"Why couldn't you stay?" She whirled and glared at Tenchi.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, before taking a swig from her bottle.

"I came to talk," he told her. "To apologize."

"Apologize for what," Ryoko asked, then taking another drink. "That accusation of yours out there?"

"Ignoring you?"

"Well, I don't need your apology," Ryoko snapped the last and teleported away. She sat down, leaning against a tree and took another drink from her bottle of sake.

"Well, that was odd," she looked towards the voice and saw Tenchi standing there looking a little confused.

"How did you get there?"

"I'm not sure," Tenchi started, then Ryoko vanished again. In a split second so did Tenchi, leaving behind a shower of blue-white sparkles that faded out as they drifted down.

This time Ryoko saw him arrive and realized that she wasn't going to be able to avoid him by teleporting. They were deeper in the woods now, but she could see the shrine a little ways down the mountain.

"Stay away from me Tenchi," Ryoko warned holding her hand out, threatening to launch an attack. Tenchi smiled walked forward.

"You tried that once before," he said confidently. "You didn't follow through then, either."

"You don't want to be around me," Ryoko said weakly. "You should be with Ayeka, you're made for each other."

"You were there when we decided otherwise," Tenchi noted. "But you're avoiding the subject. Something is wrong with you, you're not acting normal. What's wrong?"

"What's wrong with me?!" Ryoko yelled. "What's wrong? Can't you see? I'm poison! Al I'm good for is destruction, the universe would have been better off if I never survived."

"In what way is that true?"

"The akuneko wouldn't have invaded if I hadn't been here."

"And the first time they were here?"

"You and Yosho would never have had to worry about Kagato."

"I think he would have found us eventually." Ryoko growled. "And we'd have all died several times over if you hadn't been there."

"I abandoned my own son."

"I can't say much about that, but he doesn't seem very angry with you."

"Ayeka's dying!" Ryoko shouted, then she continued quietly, sitting on the ground. "She's always been there, Tenchi."

"But that's not your fault either." He countered joining Ryoko on the ground.

"Would she have gone along if I hadn't been there? Would she?"

"You're acting like she's already dead."

"Any time," Ryoko said softly. "I can feel it. Any time." She turned away from him and sat staring at a spot on the ground.

"Washu hasn't found anything wrong with her."

"I felt Yosho fall," Ryoko said. "I felt when Caine attacked you, and I felt when Ayeka started burning out"

"You know when we're in danger?" Tenchi asked, surprised.

"Yeah," Ryoko said, sounding quietly amused. "Never had much use for it before. I wish I couldn't." She stopped and Tenchi could see tears welling in her eyes.

"What do you mean by that? Is Ayeka in trouble again?"

"Tenchi, I…" Ryoko's voice cracked. "….I never _stopped_ feeling it." She seemed about to go on when her eyes widened and she teleported again. 

Washu's Lab

"Are you certain about this, Washu-s…chan?" Ayeka asked, eyeing the various cables and electrodes attached to various points on her body.

"I'm surprised that I didn't think of it before," Washu answered simply. "Okay, try something simple first." Washu watched the graphic representation of Ayeka's energy field closely. There were gaps and holes in the field, the entire structure seemed unstable.

"Okay," she closed her eyes and concentrated forming a small globe of blue light. As she drew the power she felt a tightness, it was difficult, and painful. It wasn't that burning sensation from before, it was different. A stretching sensation, like she was reaching for something at the extreme of her grasp.

"Ayeka, Stop it!" That sounded like Ryoko, but why would she be here.

Finally, she grabbed the Jurai power that surrounded her and formed it into a small globe. Then she let go and the globe faded away. Ayeka slumped in exhaustion, all that effort for a tiny, short-lived light. This possibility was partially why she had avoided using the Jurai power all this time, not that she used it much anyway.

"Are you crazy Washu?" Ryoko was shouting at the unresponsive scientist who was looking over the readouts with a zeal of discovery. Ayeka felt someone lightly slapping her face. "Ayeka, are you okay, wake up."

"Ryoko what are you doing," Ayeka demanded. She opened her eyes and saw Ryoko release a held breath. A shower of blue-white sparks appeared and coalesced into Tenchi.

"Washu, what are you doing?" Tenchi demanded.

"Hmm, you've learned to teleport," Washu noted as she looked up from her computers. "That is interesting, I wonder if it bears in relation to Ryoko's method of teleporting."

"Washu…"

"Calm down Tenchi, Ayeka's fine," Washu said.

"She is not fine," Ryoko shouted, helping Ayeka, despite protests that she could take care of herself, down from Washu's sensors. "Do you even no what you're doing?"

"Actually," Washu said smiling. "I think this last test has isolated the problem." Ayeka lifted her head up suddenly and fixed Washu with a glare.

"What do you mean by that?" she demanded.

"Well, I have good news and bad news," Washu said. "The good news, I think the damage is reparable, the bad news is that there is no telling how long we have."

Return to Kiyone Muyo! contents page


	21. No Need for a Cure

No Need for a Cure

Washu's Laboratory

"Can you really cure Ayeka?" Tenchi asked.

"I _believe_ that I can," Washu said.

"Out with it, Washu!" Ryoko snatched the little scientist by the collar and dragged her up. Washu regarded her with a sort of resigned, irritated look.

"Hey, Ryoko, are you drunk again?" she asked.

"What?"

"Because you really stink," Washu wrinkled her nose and wafted her hand back and forth in front of her face.

"Lady Shinku, please behave in keeping with your station," Ryoko had winced at the title. "Besides, it won't do any good to do anything to her."

"You have a point, princess," Ryoko admitted and set Washu down, not very differently. Washu wasn't particularly concerned.

"Now, can you explain what you've found out Washu?" Tenchi asked.

"Yes, please make yourself clear Washu-chan."

"I'll try," she said, calling up a holo-keyboard and typing in commands. A holographic image of Ayeka appeared, surrounded by a net of interlocking energy strands. "This is Ayeka's energy field before she burned out. The information I had at the time was sketchy so this might not be a totally accurate representation so much as it is a reconstruction based on my current findings." Everybody nodded as she pointed out the pale blue energy net on the three-dimensional hologram.

"Okay, now these strands are actually indicative of the paths of certain sub-atomic particles that surround the Jurai noble. These particles interact to produce the Jurai energy, though there is also some influence from the person itself that makes the effect very difficult to reproduce accurately through artificial means. In essence, a person is capable of sustaining a higher charge and producing much more complex effects that a mere machine."

"Get to the point Washu," Ryoko snapped.

"The point is, Ryoko," Washu typed a few more commands on her keyboard. "That this is what the paths about Ayeka look like now." The hologram changed to reveal a ravaged net. "In order to supply Ayeka with enough power for what she wanted to do, she transferred a majority of the particles about her into Jurai energy. At least I suspect that this is what happened. So now this little orbit here," she pointed to a line just above the hologram's head. "Has only one or two other orbits that it intersects with. Same here, and here and so on."

"How does this help, Washu-s..chan?" Ayeka asked. "You still haven't shown how this damage could be fixed.

"Yes, well," Washu cleared her throat. "When you attempted to channel just a moment before, most of the energy went into bridging these gaps here." She typed a few commands on her keyboard and pointed to three of the gaps in the net. As she pointed they were filled. "The energy was converted back into the necessary particles and so the damage was repaired."

"So all she has to do is keep channeling and it will repair itself," Tenchi asked.

"NO!" Washu and Ryoko snapped at once.

"The net was repaired here, Tenchi, but," Washu typed some more and the hologram changed again. "See here, the strain was starting to fray these other strands across the net as a whole. And as that was happening her vital signs went wild. Just channeling is not an option, it will do more harm than good."

"Then what is the answer?" Ayeka demanded exasperated. Washu was programming the hologram again.

"If we can supply your net with Jurai energy from an outside source," Washu noted. "Then perhaps that outside force can provide the energy needed to rebuild your net."

"I'm willing…"

"Not you Tenchi, it won't work. I thought about you and Ryoko almost immediately, but the energy fields are not compatible."

"What," Tenchi said. "Why not?" Washu was typing on her holo-board again.

"Well the short of it is that you are not pure-blooded Jurai noble," Washu said. "Not that it would really matter in a normal case, Ayeka isn't pure either. Ryoko seems to be the only pure bred noble anything of you three."

"I beg your pardon!" Ayeka snapped angrily. Washu continued on without paying attention.

"Watch what you're saying, Washu," Ryoko growled, disliking the reminder of the heritage that had caused so much trouble.

"But in Ayeka's case her non-Jurai noble ancestor was just an average person without access to any power source. Some where in your ancestry you have Terran spiritual power as well." Two new holograms appeared showing Tenchi and Ryoko with similar particle nets about them. Tenchi actually seemed to have two intersecting nets of pale blue and white. "I've watched, you can't channel Jurai power without channeling Terran power as well. It is not compatible with Ayeka's net."

"What about Grandfa…" Ayeka started.

"He's powerful, and pure blood, at least unmixed blood. He's also quite old, however, and I don't know if he could do it, for all that he is hale."

"Your Jurai power generators?" Ryoko suggested.

"Well, after confiscating and dismantling one Kiyone's new rifles," she said that with a touch of pride. "I concluded that the energy produced is too raw to be used for much in the way of practical purposes, just brute stuff like with Caine and then powering Kiyone's rifles."

The conversation was interrupted by the appearance of a communicator screen from the Yagami.

"Are you guys still there?" Kiyone asked. Then she took in the scene and sighed. "Did something happen with Ayeka?"

"We were discussing a possible treatment for my…injury," Ayeka hmphed in response to being treated as if she weren't there again.

"I see, well we don't have too much time left, and there has been a complication."

"What kind of complication?" Tenchi asked. "I thought the Jurai Empire and GP had already said they didn't mind us talking to Earth's governments."

"Yes, well this is for Ryoko," Kiyone reported. The screen split to reveal Kamidake, the younger of the two knights.

"Princess Ayeka, I hope that you are well," he said almost immediately.

"I am as fine as can be expected, Kamidake-san."

"Has the great Washu," there was no sarcasm. "found a…treatment for your…condition?"

"There is a possibility, but you have business with Lady Shinku, do you not?"

"Yeah, what do you want me for?"

"There has been a problem with some of the Akuneko that were captured on the Jurai border."

"I thought they all went back across dead space," Tenchi said.

"Well, the survivors of the Shiroi clan that attacked the main force of Jurai apparently don't want to return," Kamidake said. "They seem to want asylum over here, and now we have reports that more ships are appearing. Not combat vessels it seems, but various civilian craft."

"What can I do about that?" Ryoko asked irritably.

"Perhaps when you speak to the governments of Earth today, you can arrange permission for a colony over there. On one of those unused planets maybe. This permission is really more of a formality anyway, isn't it."

"Unused planets," Tenchi repeated. "They're unused because they're unliveable."

"That's what terraforming is for," Washu announced suddenly, a particularly hungry gleam in her eyes. Everybody sweatdropped as they imagined what a Washu terraforming project would look like. 

"Talk to Kiyone and Tenchi, they're doing the talking."

"Excuse me Lady Shinku, but they also seek your permission," Kamidake said embarrsed.

"Why would they want my permission," Ryoko asked.

"Because they are apparently looking to you as their rightful ruler."

"Well they can take that and stuff it," Ryoko snapped. "Why are you making this call and not some pointless little bureaucrat."

"Well…I was…concerned for Princess Ayeka," he admitted. Ayeka blushed demurely. "She was defending me at the time."

"Well this is certainly an interesting turn of events," Washu suggested. "Perhaps you would be willing to help with Ayeka-san's treatment?"

"Of course I'd be willing, I can come to Earth immediately."

"No, please sir, don't trouble yourself," Ayeka interrupted. "I shall come to you, if Washu-sa….err…chan has nothing against that."

"Certainly not, there's only so much I can do in this part of the galaxy any way."

"You're leaving?" Ryoko asked in disbelief.

"I shall be back Lady Shinku, you can have faith in that," she smirked. "Somebody needs to teach you the proper way in which royalty should behave."

"I do have one complaint," Washu noted. "Unless Ryoko is willing to let Ryo-Ohki carry us…"

"Yes!" Ryoko snapped.

"Then it is settled then," Ayeka sighed. "I shall be returning to the imperial planet, Kamidake-san, but please do not tell anyone as of yet."

"Well Tenchi, are you just going to stand there?" Ryoko tapped her foot angrily. "I thought we had somewhere to go. Oh never mind." She vanished, teleporting off to the Yagami no doubt.

"She's getting worse isn't she," Ayeka sighed.

"I'll try to talk to her as soon as I can get her alone again," Tenchi said, before dissipating into a series of blue-white motes.

Return to Kiyone Muyo! contents page


	22. No Need for Diplomacy

No Need for Diplomacy

Miho-Kiyo's Place

"Washu found a cure," Kiyone breathed the phrase out quietly. "Good, very good." She then returned to pacing.

"Washu-sa….chan," Karya scanned about the area as she nearly used the wrong suffix. "Found a cure, Ayeka-sama is going to be okay?"

"Oh YAY!" Mihoshi shouted clapping her hands vigorously. Kiyone continued pacing nervously, while Rakkan and Karya both watched the happy blonde, ready to bolt if necessary. "That's great."

"Captain Makibi, why does this make you nervous?" Rakkan asked, still eyeing Mihoshi and any and all potential dangerous objects near her.

"It doesn't, I was already nervous," she said. "Where are Tenchi and….RYOKO!" Kiyone had to shift position quickly to dodge the suddenly appeared space pirate.

"Sorry about that," Ryoko apologized irritably.

"Where is Lord Tenchi?" Karya asked.

"This little feud of yours is going to make us late," Kiyone started. "How is…." Tenchi's swarm of sparks cut off Kiyone's reproach as the jurai prince materialized. The detective sighed in exasperation. "Now there are four of you."

"Didn't mean to startle anybody," Tenchi said apologetically.

"How long is this going to take?" Ryoko demanded glancing irritably about the room.

"I don't know yet," Kiyone sighed. "Are you ready?" She glanced at her fellow delegates and arched an eyebrow, there was no venom going back and forth. Tenchi was watching Ryoko with obvious concern, while Ryoko was trying to avoid looking for long at anybody. Something had happened to end hostilities between them.

"As ready as I'll ever be I guess," Tenchi shrugged. "Which of us is doing the talking?"

"Like Ryoko said," Kiyone answered reluctantly. "You and me." This was probably going to be the most annoying thing they had to do for quite while.

"Can we get this over with please? Its almost time for the show."

"Yagami, boarding Ryoko, Tenchi and me," Kiyone ordered, ignoring Ryoko. The three of them vanished flickering away as Yagami teleported them on board. Rakkan and Karya glanced at each other and tried to sneak out of the room.

"Hey! Are you going to Tenchi's house?" Mihoshi yelled. "Can I come too?" Rakkan and Karya groaned.

"Maybe we can sic her on Washu while the show is on," Rakkan suggested.

"Certainly, Mihoshi," the Jurai said cheerfully. "And I'll bet Washu has a bunch of inventions for you as a law enforcement officer."

"Oooo, cool!" Mihoshi declared rushing out the door ahead of them. 

"Good idea, Rakkan-san" Karya admitted grudgingly. Then they realized that Mihoshi was unsupervised and bolted out the door after her.

SETI Main Headquarters

"Excuse me," the secretary looked up to see a young woman in some sort of uniform or costume or something. Another woman with spiky silver hair stood behind her who was looking rather irritable and nervous. Watching her was a young man, maybe in his late teens. The bored woman blinked, more sci-fi fans looking for a tour. She yawned and stretched. "This is SETI right?"

"I'm sorry, but there are no more tours for another two…" the secretary's eyes popped wide and jaw dropped as the silver haired woman sat down. Sitting cross-legged in thin air with a black cat tail swishing along behind her.

"Well, we weren't really interested in taking the tour," the uniformed woman said. "Though its good to know these translators work."

"Do we have to do this now?" the floating woman grumbled.

"Actually, Ryoko has a point," the boy said. "We do have a few other things happening right now."

"Which is why we're getting this over with right now," the uniformed girl said.

"And what is the nature of your business?" the secretary asked hollowly.

"This is the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence?" the uniformed woman asked.

"Yes," she nodded staring at the floating silver-haired woman.

"What are you looking at?"

"Ryoko, please behave," the uniformed woman said. "Anyway, I guess that means we're in the right place."

"Right place for what?"

"Ryoko and Kiyone are extra-terrestrials," Tenchi put in.

"Uh," the secretary blinked. "huh. Could you wait here please?" The woman stood up and backed out of the room fumbling for the door.

"Weren't we going to see the UN?" Tenchi asked.

"Well, yeah," Kiyone said. "But it makes sense to do this first, plus we should give them first crack with all the hard work they're doing."

"They're out there, sir." They heard behind the door the secretary had entered.

"I don't see what the big deal is," some body complained. "Its probably just a trekkie with a good…" the door opened revealing a geeky looking guy in his thirties who saw Ryoko floating in mid air and then immediately closed the door again. The three of them sweat dropped at the sound of running footsteps. About ten minutes later there was the sound of virtual stampede heading for the outer office.

Kiyone, Tenchi and Ryoko glanced at each other once before the door seemed to explode open with a flood of earth scientists. After people stopped spilling through the doorway a blonde woman stepped forward nervously.

"I'd like to welcome you on behalf of the people of Earth," she said, extending a hand toward Kiyone and eyeing Ryoko. "I'm Dr. Emily Delujenul and you are?"

"Captain Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police," Kiyone said. "Ranking officer assigned to this sector."

"_Ranking…_officer?"

"Well there's just me and my partner really," Kiyone started.

"And that would be her?" the scientist asked, pointed at Ryoko.

"Like hell no," Ryoko snapped. "Her partner is walking disaster zone with blonde hair." They glanced at Kiyone.

"You have no idea, Ryoko, no idea." Most of the scientists sweatdropped.

"So who are they, then?"

"I'm Tenchi Masaki," Tenchi said, politely. "And I'm not an extra-terrestrial." There was a brief wave of disappointment. "My grandfather is." Tenchi sweatdropped as the scientists face faulted.

"And her?"

"I'm Ryoko."

"That's it?"

"You probably don't want to hear the full story."

"Oh yes we do," came the chorused reply.

"Okay, I'm Ryoko, a powerful space pirate and formerly one of the most wanted criminals in the galaxy." They all took a step back from her.

"She's was pardoned after she helped save the galaxy," Kiyone quickly informed them, and they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"How do you know English?" the speaker narrowed his eyes. "Have you been studying us?"

"Well, I learned a little English in school," Tenchi said. "But Washu made these translators for this trip." He pointed out the little clip on his shirt collar.

"Oh, wait, you said your grandfather was an extra-terrestrial?"

"Yes, his grandfather is Lord Yosho former crown prince of the Jurai Empire," Kiyone confirmed. Tenchi sweatdropped as they blinked.

"Uh huh, and where is that located?"

"Oh well, this is easier," Kiyone set down a disc and depressed a button. A hologram map of the galaxy flared into life revealing the jurisdictional boundaries of the Galaxy Police and Jurai empire. "That's Sol, and that's Jurai."

"That's nearly the center of the galaxy!"

"Yeah, about a month's travel," Tenchi said. They stared at him in shock. "Though we were trying to avoid attention at the time, so it might have taken a little extra time."

"Hey, if you're a Galaxy Police officer," someone asked. "Where's your headquarters?" Kiyone looked at the map for a moment.

"Secondary headquarters is here," she pointed to a spot that lit up.

"What happened to the primary headquarters?"

"Caine," the three of them answered together.

"Huh?"

"Oh, don't worry, we're fairly certain he's destroyed," Kiyone said.

"Even if he's not, it'll take him a while to find this dimension again," Ryoko said.

"Uh huh. So you're a cop, you're an ex-pirate, and you're royalty."

"That about covers it," Kiyone said. "Well for those of us that are here."

"Who else is there?"

"The current crown princess of Jurai, and her sister," Kiyone said.

"Is she his aunt or sister or something?" The speaker pointed at Tenchi.

"I think its more like really, really, really distant cousins," Tenchi said.

"Ryoko's son.."

"Ah…he was born here," Ryoko said. "He doesn't count, does he?"

"I'm not sure, we haven't had to think of this question before."

"That's a good point," Kiyone said. "And that leaves, Karya and Rakkan, Washu, and my partner."

"Do you mind if we collect some personal information," someone asked.

"Like what?"

"Name, age, birth place…"

"Measurements?" Most of the women in the room turned to glare at the speaker while most of the men cleared the area around him as various bashing objects were pulled from mallet space and smashed him into the ground.

"There's something wrong with that question?" Ryoko asked.

"She's a little…."

"Amoral…" Kiyone confirmed.

"I wouldn't go THAT far," Tenchi said, before Ryoko could move to agree.

"Umm…before we sink into personal relationships," they turned to face someone with a clipboard.

"Mind if I get this done with first?" Ryoko asked. "There's other things I could be doing."

"Uh, okay," the scientist with the clipboard asked. "Name?"

"Ryoko."

"Last Name?"

"Just Ryoko."

"Age?"

"About two thousand eighteen," she said, they all stared at her, blinking. "What?" 

"Uh…uh…something safe," the scientist thought. "Next of kin?"

"I have a son, Rikyu," she said. "Is there anything else you need?"

"Occupation, space pirate?" Ryoko shrugged. "Where were you born."

"I don't know," they glanced at her. "Seriously, I don't know, my parents were royalty or something from some place outside the Galaxy."

"You're extra-GALACTIC?!?!"

"At least they won't be as shocked when it gets to us this way," Kiyone muttered. She shrugged upon noticing that Tenchi wasn't paying attention to her. "Well, at least they're not tearing each other's throats out." On the other hand, Ryoko was a mass of angst rivaling her when she had first been assigned to the Sol system.

"Okay, that's it," Ryoko sighed. "Any other question…no? Bye then." And Ryoko vanished. Kiyone reached out and snatched Tenchi before he could move.

"What are…?"

"She's going to be all right for now," Kiyone muttered. "You are not leaving me here alone."

"Are you sure?" Tenchi asked, eyes narrowed. Kiyone smiled through gritted teeth and turned towards the near-catatonic scientists.

"I'm positive," she plastered on her plastic cheerful expression and turned to the scientists. "I'm next?"

Masaki House

"What's happened?" Ryoko demanded she appeared above her normal seat and floated down.

"Tadaaki's dead."

"WHAT?!?" Ryoko leaned forward and glued her eyes to the screen. "What happened?"

"His car went over a cliff and they found this burned up body inside."

"Detective," one of the actors called out. "The lab just sent this up." The four television viewers leaned forward.

"I thought so," he said. "The brakes were tampered with, this is murder!"

"It was that Kimi woman," Nyoko shouted. Ryoko scratched her head, something was different. "I heard her threaten him."

"Wait a minute," Ayeka said. "Doesn't Mihoshi usually break in at this point and switch the channel."

"Oh, we took care of that," Karya said, not looking away from the screen.

"How'd you manage that?"

"We told her that Washu probably had some inventions that would help her be a better police officer." Ayeka and Ryoko turned several shades paler.

"You told her to go play with Washu's inventions?"

"How's she going to get there," Karya asked.

"Isn't Washu-sa…chan's laboratory in another dimension as it is?" They looked to the shell-shocked Ryoko and Ayeka and sweatdropped.

"We made a mistake…..didn't we?" Ayeka and Ryoko nodded slowly.

Return to Kiyone Muyo! contents page


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